Inner Peace
by 1st endeavor
Summary: 2 brothers, 1 little girl, 2 angry Mexicans and the Mojave Desert. A tale of survival. "In the blink of an eye everything can change"
1. Chapter 1

Inner Peace

Author: 1st endeavor

Disclaimer: All the characters and references to the show "NUMB3RS" are the property of Cheryl Heuton and Nick Falacci, CBS and the Scott Brothers. I am not making any profit from this and no infringement is intended. However, my original characters and story line are mine.

Chapter 1:

Walter Simmons sat in the back of the ambulance and stared morosely at the activity in front of him.

Multiple police cars and a multitude of law enforcement personnel were spread out around the public park. All streets leading to the park had been cordoned off by LAPD police cruisers and other law enforcement vehicles. Police officers with grim faces stood in front of those vehicles now, determined to prevent the curious onlookers from contaminating the crime scene.

He glanced at the news van still parked behind the barricade and watched as the impatient reporter tried to get closer to the scene. The reporter would have to stay behind the crime scene tape until the FBI forensics team had finished with their investigation, but that didn't keep the man from trying to get through.

Sighing, Walt closed his eyes and silently berated himself for failing to stop the abduction. In his younger days he would have been able to outdistance the kidnapper and stop him long before he even had a chance to put the truck into drive. In his prime, at six foot two and a hundred and ninety-five pounds he had been a force to contend with. But that had been when he was younger and although he still tried to keep himself in good shape, he could not keep time from tacking its toll on him. At sixty-two, he just was not as fast as he used to be and that fact had never become more apparent to him than at that very moment. Time had not taken away his eyes, however, and his one consolation was that at least he had some good information to give to the FBI; his startling blue eyes were still just as sharp as they ever were.

The medical technician returned to check his blood pressure and give him a new ice pack and then left to report his patient's condition to the ER personnel at the hospital.

Frustrated at his failure, Walt jammed the ice pack against the side of his head and winced, immediately regretting his action. Old age had done this to him; at least that was how he looked at it anyway. The only way that creep had been able to shake him off like that was because of the arthritis that was developing in his hands and knees. Walt grumbled to himself as he watched the LAPD rope off more of the playground area with the all too familiar yellow tape. He was no stranger to this procedure, as a retired LAPD officer himself; he knew every step that the police dept would take.

Walt sighed and shifted his position, trying to get a little more comfortable and looked up just as another vehicle pulled in and parked between two of the patrol cars. He recognized the black suburban right away; this had to be another FBI team. Glancing sideways at the distraught parents, he spied the first two agents that had arrived at the scene.

During his many years of service, Walt had worked with a number of FBI agents. Some of them he liked others he merely tolerated. He had to admit that Agents Sinclair and Granger had impressed him with the way they handled themselves. Professional, courteous but there was more to it than that. This was more than a job to them, he could see it in their eyes; they really cared about the people.

The retired officer shifted his gaze back to the suburban. After forty years as a trained observer, it was obvious to him that the agent in charge had just arrived at the scene. As he watched, the doors opened and two men climbed out of the vehicle. He did not have a clear view of the man on the passenger side but the one standing by the driver's side door had to be the boss. Wearing an FBI cap and jacket, the man stood quietly by the door perusing the scene. It was not the clothes that marked him as the boss but the presence that radiated from his stance; authority, confidence and ability.

The second man came around the vehicle carrying a map and a clipboard. Dressed casually in jeans, tee shirt and an opened button down shirt he presented a more youthful appearance than the federal agent. He had a slighter build than the SAC and had dark curls framing his face, giving the observer the impression that he was looking at a college student, but his manner spoke more of maturity and experience. This wasn't a student but someone who was sure of himself and his abilities.

Walt leaned forward, his curiosity getting the better of him as he studied the younger man, trying to pinpoint his role in this investigation. As he watched, the young man spread the map out on the hood of the vehicle and began to trace a path across the paper with his finger while explaining something to the agent. Next, the young man turned and pointed to the area surrounding the park and then closed up the map as the agent nodded his head in agreement.

"_Consultant." _Walt let a triumphant grin play across his face. "_That's it; the kid's some kind of consultant."_

The consultant started to walk away but the agent stretched out a hand and rested it on the man's shoulder successfully halting his progress. With his other hand, the SAC motioned for an officer to join them.

Walt's forehead wrinkled in puzzlement as he watched them. That simple touch spoke volumes to him. There was more here than a professional relationship and as he gazed at them a distant memory began to stir in his mind… He had a vision of another time and of another place; a place where an older boy had stood the exact same way, with a protective arm around his curly-haired younger brother trying to keep him from harm. Walt shut his eyes tightly and tried to bring the memory forward, but it remained hidden, just out of reach and tickling the edges of his mind. The retired officer couldn't place it but he knew that somehow he had seen both of those men before. .

He would figure it out, he told himself, as he watched them separate. The younger man and the officer headed toward the woods while the agent worked his way through the crowd toward the crime scene.

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Don parked his car next to a patrol car and turned off the ignition. He climbed out and stood by the open door as he perused the scene thoughtfully. A rather large crowd had gathered just behind the barriers to view the police activity and he suspected that most of them were neighbors of the victim and were quite shocked to learn that something like this could happen in their small community. It was just an ordinary neighborhood, one of thousands in Los Angeles County, but this one would never be the same for these people again. They're safe world had just been rocked off its axis because one of life's horrors had suddenly and inexplicably targeted one of they're own. The world really was in a sad state of affairs when a playground could be turned into a crime scene.

His gaze fell upon the grief-stricken parents sitting on one of the park benches. They were speaking with David and Colby and the husband was trying to comfort his wife, who was sobbing uncontrollably in his arms.

"Don."

The agent turned as his brother came around the vehicle and he went to join him at the front of the car as Charlie opened a map and spread it out over the hood of the SUV.

"You got something?"

"Maybe, but it's too soon to tell." Charlie looked up and scanned the area. "I'll know more after I look around." He folded the map and picked up his clipboard. "I'm going to walk around the block and see if there is anything else that I can use in my equation."

Don's arm came around his neck as he started to move away.

"What?" he asked, looking up in surprise.

"You can look around Charlie, but you're not going alone. " The agent stated grimly as he waved for a patrol officer to come over.

The officer hurried over and Don flashed his badge. "This is Dr. Eppes; he's a consultant on this case. Stay with him, he's going to check out the area."

Charlie eyebrows rose in surprise as he turned to face his brother. "Don, do you really think that is necessary? I mean, the guy's going after kids, not adults."

"I know that Charlie but this is an active crime scene and if he should come back to see what is going on you might get in his way, and that's not a chance that I'm willing to take." Don explained patiently.

Charlie opened his mouth to protest but noted the grim set of Don's jaw and decided that it would be a waste of time to try and get Don to see that the odds of that happening were practically zero.

"Fine." he responded in a clipped voice and with a shrug turned away without another word . The officer gave Don a nod and hurriedly left to catch up with him.

"Hey Don." The agent turned as David and Colby came up to join him.

"What have you got?"

"The little girl's name is Samantha Wilkins. Five years old, blond hair, blue eyes" David responded. "She weighs approximately 35 lbs and is three and a half feet tall. She was snatched from the swing set forty-five minutes ago." he glanced at his notes. "Samantha was wearing a long-sleeved pink shirt, jeans, a purple jacket and a pair of pink sneakers. Oh, and she had a pink and purple toy backpack, containing a doll and a stuffed toy dog. The backpack has a heart shaped I.D tag attached to it with her name on it."

"Uh, huh, and where was the mother?" Don asked nodding in the direction of the distraught woman.

"Forty feet away." Colby answered. "She went to her car to get her camera and when she looked down to get it, the man came running out of the woods and snatched the kid."

David picked it up. "Yeah, the mom gave chase but the guy was too fast."

Don glanced sideways at the distraught couple. "Did she get a good description of the man?"

"No." Colby said with a shake of his head. "It happened too fast and she only saw him from the back."

"But we may have a break this time Don."

Don pulled his glasses down and looked over them at David. "How so?"

"This time we have a witness."

"Who?" The agent asked as he pushed his glasses back into position and looked around.

"Over there." David responded pointing at a man sitting in the ambulance. He flipped his notebook open and searched through several pages before he found the entry he was looking for. "Walter Simmons, a retired LAPD officer. He was jogging and heard the mother screaming and tried to stop the abduction."

"As soon as he gets checked out, we'll get him down to headquarters and get his statement." Colby added.

"What's his story?"

"He was able to jump on the side of the truck and hold on for a while, but our perp sped up and shook him off. He said the man had a hood over his face but he gave us a good description of the truck. Unfortunately, he was never in a position to see the license plate." David closed his notebook and returned it to his pocket.

"Anyway, after the truck was gone, he contacted LAPD and they issued an Amber Alert right away and within fifteen minutes road blocks were set up and they were checking vehicles."

Don shook his head and sighed. "That's a long shot at best. The 10 is only six minutes away, he'd be a fool not to jump on it and get out of the area." His eyes drifted back to the parents. "Do they live nearby?"

"Yeah, two blocks over. The mother said that they usually walk over to the park everyday around this same time." David paused and coughed to clear his throat. "She had a doctor's appointment later this afternoon and decided to drive over instead so they could leave from here. "

"So he knew her schedule." Don mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "If our guy has been watching her then its possible that someone else in the neighborhood might have noticed him." He glanced around the park once again and then added. " Colby, get LAPD to start canvassing the neighborhood, find out if anyone saw that truck or any strangers hanging around here."

"On it Don." Colby said over his shoulder as he hurriedly departed.

"David, show me where he came out of the woods."

Don mulled over the case and so far the kidnapper had been very careful about leaving any evidence behind. The bodies would turn up about a week later, wrapped in plastic and placed in a dark alley somewhere. All of them had been sexually assaulted and strangled.

Fear was beginning to grip the city, and without any new leads to go on the LAPD had asked for the FBI's help. The case had been turned over to Don's team after the third abduction. A serial rapist was bad enough but they were dealing with a pedophile that was going after little girls and until today the youngest one had been seven years old. Samantha was only five and unless they were able to find her in time, she would become his youngest victim so far.

His team had been working almost non-stop for the past two days trying to find the killer before he could strike again but today's attack had crushed that hope and now all they could do was try and find him before it was too late to save the little girl.

"It looks like he waited behind these bushes." David was saying as he waved his hand toward a group of low bushes near the edge of the sidewalk. They ducked under the yellow tape to take a closer look, careful not to compromise any of the evidence. "There are cigarette butts and footprints so it's looks like he waited for a while."

"Yeah." Don agreed., turning his attention back to the evidence. "He definitely knew their schedule."

"Has Charlie come up with anything yet?" David asked.

"Not yet. He's trying to pinpoint the man's home base but he needs more data." At the mention of his brother's name Don automatically began to scan the area for him.

"Where did he go?' Muttering to himself he slowly turned in a circle looking for Charlie. Don had been reluctant to bring his brother in on this case because Charlie had a tendency to get emotionally involved with cases that involved children. But if the little girl was going to have a chance then Charlie was probably his best bet to find her.

"I don't see him." David commented. "Did he come with you or did he drive his own car?"

"With me." Don responded absently as he began to walk back toward his car. He scanned through the multitude of law enforcement personnel and curious onlookers as he and David approached the suburban.

Colby caught up to them as they reached the vehicle.

"Hey Colb, have you seen Charlie?" Don asked worriedly.

Colby shook his head and noted the concern in Don's voice. "No. What's up?" He shared a quick glance with his partner and began to look around himself.

Don shrugged his shoulders. "Probably nothing. This case just has me on edge." Don really couldn't explain his uneasy feeling other than the fact that Charlie had experienced a couple of "close calls" when he had helped them out on other cases. He rubbed the back of his neck tiredly; he really had to stop this he told himself. Charlie wasn't just his kid brother anymore, he had become a valuable member of his team, and he had to stop being so overprotective of him.

"Charlie was just going to look around and try and gather more data for his equations. The question now is where did he go?"

Don caught movement out of the corner of his eyes and he shifted his gaze toward the ambulance. He watched it thoughtfully as it slowly wove its way through the throng of onlookers. A lot rested on the witness that it was carrying and Don hoped that David was right about getting a break in the case. He felt a tap on his shoulder and he looked around to meet his brother's eyes.

"Did you find anything useful?" He asked, quickly shifting his gaze so his brother wouldn't see the relieved expression in his eyes.

"Maybe, but I'll know for sure after I get more info on what happened here." Charlie glanced at his clipboard and made a few more notes before looking back up again. "Are you almost finished here? I need to get on this ASAP."

"I'll drop you off; I'm ready to head back to the office now anyway. " Don responded sadly as his gaze drifted to the parents of the missing child.

They had to get a break in the case from somewhere, maybe Charlie could come up with something before little Samantha Wilkins became victim number four.


	2. Chapter 2

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I'd like to thank everyone who is reading this story and say a special thank-you to those of you that have taken the time to review.

Chapter 2:

Charlie rapidly wrote the equations across the board and then just as quickly, erased them for the third time. He returned to his desk and double checked his notes, rubbing his hand over his chin as he studied them. Advancing once again, he put chalk to board and wrote out another equation. He was so engrossed in his work that he didn't hear the door open or Amita call out to him but he did feel the gentle hand that cupped his cheek and guided his lips downward. He pulled her closer and hungrily pressed his lips against hers.

"H, mmm." He mumbled softly a few moments later. "I really needed that."

"Me too." She responded huskily and rested her head on his chest. They remained that way for a few minutes, content to just hold tightly to one another and push the harsh realities of the case aside for a brief moment.

Charlie found solace in her arms and all too soon, Amita pushed him to arms length and looked up at him with troubled eyes.

"I'm worried about you Charlie. When was the last time that you slept?"

Charlie opened his mouth to speak but she placed two fingers across his lips to silence him. "Let me rephrase that question. When was the last time that you slept for more than a couple of hours? Your Dad said that you stayed out in the garage all night last night."

"Are you keeping tabs on me? " He asked jokingly, trying to lighten her mood a little, but he could see that it wasn't working so he glanced at the board to avoid meeting her eyes.

"I'll sleep after we find the little girl, hopefully before…..you know?" He said his voice dropping to a whisper.

She caressed his cheek again. "Oh, Charlie. It's just terrifying to think of that poor little baby at the mercy of that monster."

"That's why….why I can't stop." He rubbed tiredly at his forehead. "I've got to find her before its too late Amita. I just have to."

Amita gazed into the depths of his dark brown eyes and flinched at the turmoil that she saw raging there. She could see that he was fighting against all logic on this one; he didn't want to believe that his numbers were right this time. The numbers that told him that the odds of finding the little girl before the kidnapper killed her were against them.

"I know. Is there anything that I can do to help?" She asked, glancing at the equations on the board.

Charlie shook his head slowly. "Thanks, but at this point there's nothing more that I can do." His gaze drifted to the chalkboard. "I'm going to go back to the FBI and see if they have any new information on the case."

She pulled him into another kiss and let her fingers play through his curls. "I'm going to stay at my apartment tonight and work on a research project so why don't you come by later and let me massage your neck and shoulders for you. Your muscles are really tight on the back of your neck." Amita's nimble hands kneaded the back of his neck to prove her point.

"Oh…that feels so good." He whispered in her ear and a wolfish grin played across his features. "I'm not sure how much sleep I would get at your place tonight."

A devilish light appeared in her dark eyes as she pulled back to meet his gaze. "I'm sure we can find a few hours to set aside for some sleep. See you later."

She stepped out of his embrace and her expression changed back to one of worry. "Come by later... okay?"

"I'll try." He said and stared at the door long after it had closed behind her.

Charlie shook himself out of his reverie and focused once again on the chalkboard.

"_What am I missing?_' He mused thoughtfully and leaned back to sit on the edge of his desk. He rubbed at his temple in frustration; and then suddenly grabbed his laptop, keys and jacket and headed for the door.

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Walt followed his escort through the busy aisles to one of the interrogation rooms. The guard held open the door and motioned for him to go on in and take a seat.

"One of the agents will be with you shortly." He said before turning away and closing the door behind him.

Walt sat quietly at the table, trying to recall all of the events of the abduction. He knew how important detail was in an investigation and he didn't want to leave anything out.

The door opened and his eyes widened in surprise to see the lead agent enter the room. He had expected one of the agents that he had met earlier at the crime scene.

"Don Eppes." The SAC said as he extended his hand.

Walt nodded and shook his hand. "Walt Simmons."

"Agent Granger will actually take your statement but he's on the phone right now. I thought I'd see if you would like some coffee. I'm headed that way myself."

"Yeah sure." Walt answered and followed him out of the room and around the corner to the break room.

"Thank you for coming down so quickly Officer Simmons." Don commented as he poured a cup of coffee and handed it to the older man.

"It's the least that I can do Agent Eppes." Walt responded as he put some cream into his coffee. "And its Mr. now not Officer, I'm retired you know.""

Don grinned as he poured himself a cup of coffee. "I know, but I've never met a retired cop who still wasn't a cop."

Walt returned his grin. "Yeah, I suppose that's true."

Don met his gaze and hesitated a moment; there was something familiar about the man. He had seen those bright blue eyes somewhere before. "Have we met before?"

"Actually, Agent Eppes, I've been wondering the same thing, but I can't seem to place it."

Don shrugged his shoulders and motioned for Walt to follow him. "I've visited the LAPD headquarters on a number of occasions, maybe that's where we met."

"Maybe." Walt said following behind him.

Don opened the door and ushered the man into the room just as Colby rushed over to join them.

The agent stretched out his hand again. "It was nice to meet you. I'll turn you over to Agent Granger now. Gentlemen."

"Nice to meet you Agent Eppes." Walt called after him

Colby pulled out a chair and motioned for the older man to sit down. He opened up his notebook and looked up. "What can you tell me about the kidnapper?"

The older man hurried over to the table and sat down, ready to give his statement. Walt's forehead wrinkled in thought as he began to speak. "The man was wearing a brown tee shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans. I couldn't see his shoes because he was already in the truck, but when I jumped on the side of the truck I saw his jeans. The little girl was in the passenger seat crying and he was yelling at her, telling her to shut up." He shifted in his seat and lifted a hand to scrub through his remaining hair. "I tried to grab a hold of the steering wheel but he pushed me away and I had to grip the side of the door."

Walt paused to take a drink of his coffee before going on. "He had a tattoo on his left forearm. I think it was some kind of bug…no wait a minute." Walt snapped his fingers. "It was a spider, a tarantula….. I think. His hands were dirty, by that I mean it looked like he had dirt under his fingernails and around his knuckles. He was dark-skinned, like he was out in the sun a lot."

"This is really good. It's too bad the bastard was wearing that hood. Do you remember anything else?"

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Don stood outside the interrogation room and watched as Colby interviewed the witness. He had to give the officer credit;the man was giving a very good account of the kidnapping and the agent heartily agreed with Colby, it was too bad that creep had his face covered.

Simmons had come over to the office as soon as the emergency room had released him. He appeared genuinely concerned about the little girl and was anxious to help in any way that he could.

Don sighed and made his way back to the war room. He crossed his arms and leaned back against one of the tables as he studied the photographs of the children that were displayed on one of the bulletin boards. After a moment his eyes drifted to another part of the board where a map of Los Angeles had been pinned up. Red arrows marked the four separate locations of the kidnappings and they were as different as the children that had been taken.

Don stared sadly at the children's pictures. The smiling face of little Janet Martin seemed to look back at him. Short red hair and freckles and at ten years old she had been an unstoppable force on her soccer team; unstoppable until her path had somehow crossed that of a serial killer. Seven year old Katy Hodges loved to sing; her songs now silenced forever by that same monster. Nine year old Allison Sanders excelled in the sciences and had dreamed of becoming a doctor but now that dream would never see fruition because of the same killer. Three lives lost and three families left to struggle on in the wake of the tragedies.

He lost himself in the picture of little Samantha Wilkins, only five years old and still a baby. He squeezed his eyes shut momentarily; they had to find her before it was too late, they just had to. If he couldn't save this little girl then what was the point of having this job…and wasn't that the reason he joined the FBI in the first place? If he couldn't protect the innocent then why was he here? He was losing faith in himself and his abilities to perform this job. The criminal element seemed to be winning this war and he wasn't sure how much longer he could continue to fight a losing battle.

Don sighed heavily and turned from the photographs, sparing a glance for his brother who had arrived back at headquarters a half an hour earlier, still mumbling the same litany about needing more data. Charlie had gone straight to the white board without another comment.

Voices caught his attention and he turned to find David watching a breaking newscast on the large plasma screen in the war room. Don stepped over to his side and watched as the parents of Samantha Wilkins pleaded with her kidnapper to bring her safely back to them. Don shook his head sadly as he watched them plead for their daughter's release.

It was inevitable, parents in this situation always felt a need to appeal to the kidnapper, as if their plea would somehow make him realize what a terrible thing he had done and convince him to return the child unharmed. Unfortunately, the harsh reality was that this type of kidnapper had only one agenda and it wasn't money. He would feel no remorse for his actions but would move on to another victim and continue with his heinous deeds until he was caught or killed.

The agent scrubbed a hand through his hair in frustration and glanced at his watch. "_Just once_. "he thought desperately. "_Just once he would like to get to the scene before it was too late to save the victim. " _

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Walt started for the elevator but hesitated when he saw the curly haired young man through one of the glass windows. He glanced around and since no one seemed to be paying him that much attention, he casually walked toward the room where the young man was working.

Spurred on by his curiosity he stepped closer to the glass, hoping to get a look at the man's face. The young man was writing equations on a white board and would periodically turn back to the desk and flip through some pages lying there. The sense of recognition washed over Walt once again but he still couldn't pinpoint where the memory was coming from. Puzzled, he stepped even closer to the glass and jumped when a voice startled him from behind.

"Mr. Simmons."

Embarrassed, Walt turned to face Agent Granger. "I'm sorry, I know I was supposed to go but as I was leaving he caught my attention. Who is he?"

Colby glanced at Charlie before answering the question. "Professor Charles Eppes, he's a mathematician from CalSci and a consultant for us."

"Eppes? As in Agent Eppes?"

"Yeah, they're brothers."

"Brothers?" Walt glanced back at the mathematician. "_Yes, that does feel right_." he thought to himself.

Colby took the older man by the elbow and escorted him to the elevator. "I want to thank you again for your help. If we have any other questions, I'll give you a call."

They were almost at the elevator when Walt stopped. "Wait. I remembered something else. There was a strong smell of onions on the man's hand."

Colby placed his hands on his hips and stared at the man. "What do you mean? Like he had just eaten them?"

Walt shook his head. "No, not like that. It was more like the smell was a part of him, on his clothes and his skin." He met Colby's eye. "I know it sounds crazy but that was the impression I got from him."

"Okay, I'll add that to your statement."

They were at the elevators now and Colby pressed the button. The door opened almost immediately and Walt stepped in, giving the agent a nod as the door closed.

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Colby walked back and joined the team in the conference room. He sat down at the table and added the onion smell information to Walt's statement before handing it over to Don.

The senior agent leaned against the table as he read over the report and rubbed his chin. "This is pretty thorough. It's too bad he wasn't able to get a look at the man's face."

Shaking his head, he passed the paper over to David as his eyes drifted to the large bulletin board where the children's photos were being displayed. The four victims seemed to stare back at him from the board, their innocence reaching out to touch his heart. He swallowed hard and looked away from the photos just as Charlie entered the room.

"Any luck?" David asked.

Charlie shook his head. "I still don't have enough data. This abduction was the first one that actually had a witness. Can I see his statement?"

David handed the paper to Charlie and stood up just as Nikki rushed into the room.

"We got an I.D. on the truck. It was stolen from a Jason Clasp and listen to this, he lives on the same block as the Wilkens. LAPD just got the report."

"What took him so long to report it?" Colby snorted. "The kidnapping happened two hours ago."

"The man works the night shift at a local factory so he's been asleep all day. He didn't realize it was gone until he woke up a half an hour ago."

"Okay. Let's put it together. "Don said as he paced around the room. "What do we know?"

"Well, according to Simmons statement the kidnapper is Latino." David said as he shoved his hands into his pockets and leaned up against a desk.

"Yeah." Colby concurred. "Simmons thought the man had a Mexican dialect; said it didn't sound like one of the Los Angeles based Latino gangs."

Don sat on the corner of the table. "Did Simmons understand enough of it to know what the man said?"

Colby grinned. "Yeah, he said the man was cursing at him"

"No surprise there." Don returned with a slight grin.

"Simmons thought the man was about 5 ft 9 and weighed around 170 or 180 lbs." David added.

"And he smelled like onions." Colby added.

"Onions?" Nikki scoffed. ""Onions on his breath kind of onions?"

"No." Colby shook his head. "Simmons said it was more like the smell was coming from his skin and was on his clothes…"

"Clothes huh?" Don stood up and paced the room, then stopped suddenly and turned toward his team. "So maybe it's someone who works in a produce warehouse or maybe he works on a farm."

Charlie looked up from the paper. "Hey Don. A number of onion farms are scattered around LA County… I could run an analysis and see if there are any farms located near the attack sites."

Don nodded his head. "That's a good idea Charlie."

He walked around the conference table rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "What if our killer is a migrant worker…..or an illegal immigrant?"

"Most of the farm immigrants in this area are from Spanish speaking countries. " David offered.

"Yeah, but if he's an illegal he won't be in Immigration's data base." Liz tossed out. "That will make him even harder to find."

"Colby, check with immigration and WAFA. Get a list of all the male immigrants that are working the onion farms in the surrounding counties."

"WAFA?" Liz asked.

"It stands for Western Alliance of Farm workers Advocates." Colby explained as he headed for the door. "The headquarters is located in Oxnard." he said over his shoulder as he left to contact the organization.

"Liz, why don't you and Nikki check with the authorities in Mexico and see if they have had any similar crimes."

The two agents turned to leave but halted when Don added. "Better check El Salvador and Honduras too."

"David, did the Amber alert get us any leads?"

"Nothing yet Don." He rubbed the top of his head tiredly and his shoulders slumped. "I'm going to get the security videos from the traffic lights near the site. Hopefully we can catch the stolen truck on one of them."

Liz's phone rang and she stepped back to answer it. "Thanks." She closed her phone and stepped back into the discussion. "That won't help. I just got a call from LAPD. They found the stolen truck parked under the 6th street bridge overpass. He must have switched vehicles.

"Don." Charlie interrupted. "When you get the figures from WAFA and immigration have them sent to Stendhauser right away. I'm going to give her a program that will analyze any similarities a lot faster than your current system."

"Sure thing Charlie…" Don said and then flipped open his phone as it began to ring "Eppes. I'll be right up. " He closed his phone and announced. "I have to go meet with the ADIC. "He headed for the door but called back over his shoulder. "I'll catch up with you later Charlie. "

Charlie watched him leave and then his eyes drifted to the pictures of the victims. He rubbed his hand nervously over his mouth as he studied them. Three of the children were already dead and the ache in his heart was growing with each passing minute. He needed to find the fourth child before it was too late.

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Wearily Don stepped off the elevator and walked slowly toward the war room. The ADIC was sending his team home to get some badly needed rest and bringing in two agents to cover operations during the night. Don had argued with him of course but eventually he had given in to his orders. He did make one demand however; he was to be notified immediately if any information regarding the case came in. The assistant director had agreed and without any further discussion everything had been arranged.

It was four o'clock and they still didn't have any real leads. They really were at a dead end until further information came in.

He approached the room quietly and observed his team unnoticed. None of them had left the office the previous night until well after midnight and all of them had started working again by seven a.m. that morning. The agents had been working on the previous murders when the call had come in about the Wilkins kidnapping. He could see the signs of fatigue on his team's faces and in their movements. Bleary eyes stared at the computer screens and voices tempered with irritation floated back and forth across the bullpen. Fatigue was taking its toll and from this point on, productivity, no matter how diligently they tried, would only deteriorate.

"_Who was he kidding?" _Don thought as he rubbed his face tiredly, he could use some sleep himself and after a few moments he called his team together.

"I want you guys to go home and get some rest." He held up a hand to halt their protests. "There's nothing more that we can do here until we get more intell and Agents Johnson and Henderson will give us a call if anything new comes in overnight. You're tired and you'll think clearer after a good night's rest. Go home. Good night. I'll see you in the morning. "

They left then, one by one, and soon only Don was left in the conference room. He gazed around the silent room and then headed back to his cubicle.

"Hey, Don."

The agent turned in surprise to find his brother standing behind him holding his open laptop. "Charlie. I didn't realize you were still here."

"Where did everybody go?" His brother asked looking around the empty war room.

"I sent 'em home to get some rest and from the way that you look, that's what you should do to." Don said, noting for the first time the dark circles under the younger mans eyes. "Are you ready to go?"

"I've left instructions for Agent Stendhouser to incorporate any data that might be found regarding the immigrants or any similar crimes in the other countries." He hesitated momentarily, noticing the tired look on his brother's face.

"But?" Don prompted as he hesitated.

"But I think there is another case that you should have a look at. " Charlie set his laptop down on his brother's desk and tapped a few of the keys.

Don sighed heavily as he sat down in his chair and rubbing his chin thoughtfully he scanned the report that Charlie had found.

After a few moments of silence he glanced sideways at his brother. "Look, Charlie, I'll admit that there are some similarities to our case but even you have to admit that there are a number of differences. " When Charlie didn't answer he looked up to meet his eye. "How did you find this report? "

"I added onion farms to my specifications and I also gave the program a wider area to search through. Then I took out certain specific points of the case so I could broaden my search and this case popped up. "He sat down on the corner of his brother's desk and leaned over to pitch his point in earnest. "Don this could be victim number one. "

"I don't know Charlie. A serial killer doesn't usually alter his patterns "He scrolled through the report a little longer and then added. "For one thing, this attack took place in San Bernardino County over eight months ago and all of the other victims were attacked in Los Angeles County within a few weeks of each other."

Don scrubbed a hand though his hair again and sighed inwardly, this was exactly why he had been so reluctant to bring his brother in on the case in the first place. He gazed at his brother and could already see the telltale signs that he was becoming angry. "Charlie, we are all trying to find this little girl before its too late but you need to step back from it, you're letting yourself get too emotionally involved. You've got to stay objective here."

But Charlie wasn't ready to concede defeat, eyes flashing angrily he ignored his brother's comment and continued to argue his point. "That doesn't mean he couldn't have started somewhere else. This little girl was assaulted and strangled just like the others and she falls well within the age parameters and….and just loot where they found her body…beside of an onion field." He shook his head from side to side and said emphatically. "Don, that can't be a random occurrence. " His left eyebrow arched upward and he gave his brother a pointed look while he waited for him to respond.

"It's a bit of a stretch Charlie and this report is only a brief synopsis of the case but I'll have an agent contact the sheriff's dept tomorrow and get a copy of the full report." Don said, hoping to calm him down.

Charlie stood up and tried to keep his voice calm. "That's not good enough Don. I need to see that site to be certain that I have all of the pertinent data." He rubbed tiredly at his brow. "Look, I don't know what the legal issues are here. Would we need a warrant to just take a look around?"

"According to the report, the San Bernardino Sheriff's Office has released the site back to the owner. The last entry date on the case was three months ago so it will probably end up in a "cold case file. " Don scrolled through the report until he found what he was looking for. "The owner of the farm has a general store at that location and it is open to the public so we wouldn't need a warrant to look around the outside of the store. The victim was found outside so just looking around the area wouldn't be a problem. "

Don studied his brother's face and then he began to smile. "Would this be another hunch Charlie? "

"Maybe. " Charlie shrugged defensively. "Look, I just need to know if it would be okay if I took a drive out there and looked around for myself."

"You mean now? It would take an hour and a half just to get out there." Don rubbed his face tiredly. "Can't you get what you need from the reports? I'll get them for you first thing in the morning."

Charlie shook his head. "No. Don its imperative that I see it for myself and I need the data tonight. This location doesn't fit into my pattern and yet it keeps popping up in my analysis. There has to be a reason for that and I have to find out what it is." He pointed at the report. "My answer is at that farm and I have to see it for myself…. and I need to do it now. " He added more firmly and cocked his head to the side as he waited for Don's answer.

The agent knew that look; there was no way that he was changing his brother's mind about this. He nodded his head, more to himself than Charlie, and weighed the information over in his mind. He was tired, but like his brother, he needed to do something, he was just too wired to go home and sleep. Wearily he pushed away from the desk and stood up, his decision made.

"All right Charlie, you win." He conceded. "Come on. I'll take you out there myself."

Charlie grinned and grabbed his laptop while Don removed his gun from his desk drawer and snapped his holster to his belt. He put an arm around his brother's neck and turned him toward the elevator.

"You don't have to go Don. I can drive myself." Charlie protested, as they walked, but he was secretly pleased that his brother had decided to go along.

"No way buddy." Don said as the elevator doors closed behind them. "The last time you had a hunch it turned out to be a good one, might as well give this one a try. " He pressed the elevator button and returned his brother's smile. "I'll have to stop for gas and we can save time if we pick up something for dinner and eat it on the way."


	3. Chapter 3

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I'd like to express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who voted for "Obsession" at the Numbers Awards. I loved writing the story and to know that you truly enjoyed it means more to me than I can say. Thank you.

Chapter 3:

Don flicked on his turn signal and began to merge with the heavy traffic onto US-101 S. Traffic could really be a bear at this time of the day in LA, but he skillfully maneuvered the SUV onto the highway and five minutes later he shifted to the left lane and took the I-10 East toward San Bernardino. Shortly after that he had to switch to the I-605 freeway and then merge onto I-210 E. Cars streamed past the SUV as he settled into the right lane and finally started to relax a little; he wouldn't have to change routes again for at least eighteen miles. The traffic began to thin out and soon they were cruising down the highway.

The agent grabbed his soda from the cup holder and took a long sip as he glanced over at his brother. Charlie had his lap top open and appeared to be studying a map of two cities, Victorville and Hesperia.

"You see anything interesting?"

Charlie looked over and arched an eyebrow. "In relation to the case or just in general?"

"Just humor me, I'm bored." Don chuckled.

"Okay." Charlie said as he scrolled through the information. "Did you know that the San Andreas Fault is only thirty miles from Hesperia?"

"You gotta do better than that bro." Don commented dryly as he checked his side view mirrors. "Everyone in California knows that the fault is located in the Cajon Pass. "

"All right then, on to the case. There are two other onion farms in this general area." He turned the laptop at an angle so that Don could see it better and then pointed out sections of the map as he spoke. "The Jameson Farm is located on the outskirts of Hesperia, but we'll have to go through the town to get to it." He paused to read a little more about the farm. "This is interesting. This farm is not harvesting its crops yet, but the other two are."

Don glanced over. "Why is that?"

"To put it simply, onion variety. The Jameson Farm grows a hybrid onion and their crop won't be ready to harvest for another two weeks but the other two farms grow a sweet Bermuda onion that is ready for harvesting now."

Don's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "All of that was in the report?"

Charlie glanced over with a lopsided grin on his face. "No it wasn't in the report but I was curious so I googled for information on the farms."

Don rolled his eyes and mumbled around the straw in his mouth as he took another sip of soda. "I should have known."

Charlie chose to ignore him and tapped a few keys on the laptop. While he waited for the information to upload he absently popped a cold French fry into his mouth. Don set his drink back into the cup holder and took advantage of his brother's distraction and nabbed a fry before Charlie could move them out of his reach.

"Hey!" Charlie cried out in mock protest. "Hands of my fry's bro. I didn't think it was possible to inhale French fries until I saw you eating yours but that doesn't mean that you can have mine."

"I can't help it if I'm still hungry." Don retorted in his defense. "What else is in the bag?"

Charlie rummaged through the paper bags containing the remainder of their dinner and pulled out an apple.

"Here, munch on this." He said, handing him the apple.

Don grinned as he took it from him. "The fry would be a lot tastier buddy."

"You're not getting my fries." Charlie reiterated as he popped another one into his mouth and muttered. "Enjoy the apple."

Don grinned and bit into the apple and as they left the city behind them the landscape began to change. Sections of the Mojave Desert began to dot the horizon.

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Ricardo Martinez or "Rico" as his friends called him cursed in frustration as he stared down at the sleeping child. He would have to wait until she woke up now before he could have his fun. The Mexican had only been back at the house for ten minutes before his buddy Julio had shown up with a few of his friends. After seeing Rico's car parked there Julio had sent his other pals on their way with the intention of sharing a bottle of tequila with his compadrre.

Faced with eminent discovery, Rico had to silence the hysterical child quickly. He grabbed the chloroform bottle and soaked a cloth with it before Julio had made it to the front porch. It had only taken a few seconds for the struggling child to succumb to the drug giving him the few minutes he needed to hide her before his friend opened the door. He laid her down behind the counter, covering her with an old blanket and had just stepped back around the counter when the door had opened and Julio staggered in. After sharing a few drinks of tequila with his friend, Rico had convinced him that he wasn't feeling well and had offered him his car keys and had insisted that he join his partying friends. But that had been two hours ago and the kid was still asleep. In his haste to silence the girl Rico had accidentally given her too much of the chloroform and now he had to wait.

Rico scratched at the three day old stubble on his face and walked over to a rickety table near the middle of the room. He sat down heavily, causing the table to wobble and quickly grabbed the open bottle of tequila before it could tip over. He took a long gulp of the potent alcohol before setting the bottle back down on the table.

The Mexican stretched out his legs and shifted his position to get more comfortable. Rico was not a patient man, never had been, and his dark mood was growing fouler by the minute. He began to tear the label from the bottle while he waited impatiently for the child to wake up.

Rico had grown up in a small border town in Mexico and his life there had not been an easy one. His parents had kicked him out at the young age of fifteen when his sexual tendencies had made themselves known to them and now the only family contact he had was with a younger cousin who had also migrated to the states. The Mexican looked much older than his forty-two years but although he had lived a rough life, it had also made him tough. He mused thoughtfully as he fingered a scar on his right cheek that began just below his eye and ended near his thick moustache. The scar was a souvenir that he had received when he crossed the border illegally ten months earlier. A border guard had caught up to him a few hours after he had made it to US soil and Rico had surprised him with the knife. He may have ended up with a scar on his face but the guard's fate had been much worse. Rico had buried him under some bushes and the memory of pulling the knife out of the guards chest brought a smile to his face.

The Mexican took another swig from the bottle and absently scratched at the tarantula tattoo on his forearm. He was hot and sweaty and was growing more and more irritable by the minute. He picked up a pack of cigarettes from the table and shook one of them out of the pack. Rico stuck the cigarette between his teeth and began a search for his matches.

Frustrated, he stood up and walked across the room, kicking over an empty liquor bottle and anything else that happened to cross his path. Finally, he found the elusive box of matches on the counter top and immediately lit up his cigarette. Rico sighed with relief as he took a long drag and then released a puff of smoke. His eyes drifted to the sleeping child on the floor and he squatted down beside of her, roughly pulling the blanket away from her face.

"Ah" he whispered huskily. "Soon little one…soon. "

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Don and Charlie's mood began to lighten up a as the car sped along the interstate and they settled into a companionable silence. The agent shifted lanes to merge onto I-15 N toward Barstow; their last route change before the exit to Hesperia.

The suburban neighborhoods began to disappear as the highway began to traverse the Mohave Desert. Sagebrush, junipers and Joshua trees dotted the landscape as far as the eye could see. The distant San Gabriel mountain range appeared on the horizon breaking up the otherwise flat terrain that surrounded them now.

Don instinctively checked his gas gauge even though he knew he had plenty of gas but he couldn't help himself; he had learned a long time ago to always double check his gas gauges whenever he crossed the Mojave. This was one place that you definitely didn't want to run out of gas, especially at this time of year, when daytime temperatures could range between 120 and 130 degrees Fahrenheit. His eyes automatically drifted to the temperature gauge on the dashboard and he arched an eyebrow at the one hundred and ten degrees that was digitally displayed there. He lowered the air conditioning within the SUV to a cool sixty-eight degrees and glanced sideways at his brother to see if he was going to grumble about the sudden change in temperature but he didn't need to worry. Charlie absently buttoned up his blazer and continued to peruse the data without a single word of protest.

But it wasn't just the temperature that one had to worry about out here …there was also the wind to consider. Windy days were very common on the Mojave and far in the distance Don could see the giant arms of solar wind mills reflecting in the sunlight as they continuously turned; spurred on by the strong winds.

It was as if the wind had suddenly sensed his thoughts and decided to make its presence known to him because a sudden blast of warm air hit the side of the vehicle. Don's hands tightened reflexively on the wheel as he fought to keep the vehicle from drifting into the other lane as millions of minute grains of sand rained against the vehicle.

The wind died down and Don took the opportunity to fish his phone from his jacket pocket. He hit the speed dial for Robin's phone and held it to his ear as he waited for her to pick it up but ultimately had to settle for leaving her a voice mail.

"Hey, Robin. I thought you would be through with your meeting by now. Charlie and I are running an errand but we should be back by 9:30. I'll give you a call when I get back, maybe we can find an old movie to watch. Talk to you later. Bye."

Don put his phone away and glanced sideways at his brother.

"Do you really think that coming all the way out here will give you more data to work with?" Don asked. "It's been eight months since this murder and the site was cleared by the police."

Charlie looked up from the map that he was studying. "I know. But there is a pattern emerging here and I need to see the site myself in order to create my statistical model."

"You said you didn't need to see the inside of the house, right? " Don frowned as a sudden thought occurred to him.

"Right. The child was found outside and according to the report the police didn't find any evidence of the crime inside the house. Why?"

"Well, I think I saw in the report that the general store is closed up right now. The owners of the farm only stock the store when their crops are ready to be harvested, and that won't be for another two weeks."

Charlie nodded his head… "I know, but we shouldn't need to see the inside anyway. "

"Good." Don said and then changed the subject. "Did you call Dad and Amita?"

Charlie shook his head without looking up. "I tried when I was picking up our dinner but I had to leave a message for both of them. Told them we'd be back by nine-thirty." He lifted his head and glanced at his brother. "You still couldn't get in touch with Robin, huh?"

Don checked his side view mirror and switched lanes to pass a slow tow truck. "She was still in a meeting so I had to leave her another message "

They passed the exit for Barstow and continued on toward Hesperia. The farm they were headed for was actually located thirty miles north of the city.

Don left the highway at the exit for Hesperia, making a right that would take them through the town. The city of Hesperia was much larger than they had anticipated and were surprised when the sign at the entrance of the city boasted a population of 80,000. But what really caught their eyes was the California Aqueduct that split the city down the center from north to south and continued underground on its way to Silverwood Lake. They by-passed the business district and turned on to a road that followed the Mojave River through the east side of the city before they turned northward and left the city behind them.

After a thirty minute ride Don turned onto yet another road that ran along the southern edge of Hesperia. The city met the desert at this point and opened up onto a somewhat pronounced mesa. Desert vegetation dotted the wide mesa, covering the expanse to the nearby foothills.

Another half an hour passed by before Don made a right hand turn onto a dirt road. Fields of green lush plants soon came into view and stood in stark contrast to the dry, bare desert that was only a few feet away.

Fully automated, large industrial sprinklers stood like mechanical sentinels at varying locations throughout the fields. Their metallic arms stretched outward and ready to give the much needed water to the plants as the hot sun dried out the soil.

"I thought this was an onion farm." Don commented. "Those large plants aren't onions."

Charlie glanced out of the window. "Those are Fava bean plants. They get really big and bushy, sometimes almost seven feet tall. The farmers in this area plant them as an alternate crop, plus it helps protect the smaller plants from the desert wind."

"You learned all of that just from googling the farms?"

"That, plus the fact that I actually worked with the California Agricultural Dept to develop an algorithm that would help them determine the optimal time for the sprinklers to function in the desert areas."

"Right." Don muttered and shook his head. "Why did I even ask?"

Charlie just grinned and turned his head to view the surrounding fields.

Ten miles up the dirt road they came to the general store or what the farm owners apparently called a general store. In reality it was a small farm house that had been converted into a store; a house that looked as if a good strong wind could blow it easily away.

Don parked and turned off the ignition. The heat became a reality as soon as they opened the doors and washed over them like a massive wave.

"It was so comfortable in the car that I forgot how hot it was out here." Charlie said as he unbuttoned his blazer.

"You got that right." His brother agreed, unzipping his own jacket as he glanced around the area. The house stood alone in the small clearing, completely surrounded by the onion and bean fields.

Don pulled his sunglasses down and studied the old house. Occasional wind gusts would blow open the screen door and then release it, letting it bang loudly against the door as it closed. . The screen door had seen better days, and Don counted at least three large rips in the screen before his gaze drifted over the rest of the house.

Two windows faced the driveway, one on either side of the door, and both were so dust covered that it was hard to see inside the windows. At first glance, the house looked deserted and Don pushed his glasses back up and walked to the side of the house to check on his brother. Charlie was standing next to a row of onions making notations on his clipboard while only a few feet away pieces of the yellow crime tape could still be seen. A light breeze swirled around them and the tape began to flap lightly against the plants, drawing Don's eyes downward. Sadly he stared at the tape;it was a somber reminder of a little girl whose life had been cut tragically short before she had even been given a chance to live it.

Don turned back toward the house but his steps slowed as his eyes drifted to a fresh set of tire tracks near the front porch steps. He squatted down and pulled off his sunglasses as he studied the tracks thoughtfully. There were two very different sets of tracks and several dusty footsteps that led up to the old porch and back down again.

He caught movement on his left side and turned his head to find his brother walking along side of the field as he made notes on his clipboard. Don put his sunglasses back on and stood up. His FBI senses were beginning to tingle as he made his way up the steps and walked across the porch to the door. The place should have been deserted but it was possible that a few illegal immigrants had found their way inside.

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The sound of an approaching vehicle lured Rico to the window and his booted heels echoed loudly across the wooden floor as he made his way over to the front of the house.

"_If Julio is coming back, I swear I will kill him." _he thought angrily as he looked out of the window. But he stepped quickly to the side and watched as an unknown black SUV drove up the dirt road, Dust clouds followed the vehicle and fully enveloped it when the car came to a halt in front of the house, momentarily hiding it from his view.

Rico's eyes narrowed as the car came to a stop and two men climbed out of the vehicle.

"_Que esta pasando?" _He thought irritably and a moment later uttered a curse when Don walked around the side of the vehicle wearing a jacket emblazoned with FBI initials.

"Chota! Chale….chale! Rico muttered as he peered through the dirty glass. He covered his mouth and swallowed hard as he watched the two men walk around the clearing. He fought down his panic and wiped his sweaty palms on his shirt as he tried to figure out an escape plan. But as he studied them his curiosity grew and he began to wonder why they were even here. He had been careful and had taken many precautions so how could they have found him? Rico ducked to the side as one of the men looked toward the windows but then sighed in relief when the agent turned aside and walked toward the other man.

"_No_. "he stubbornly thought. "_There's no way that the FBI could have found me…. and if they had, wouldn't there be more cars and more agents? " _

Rico backed slowly away from the window until his back was up against the counter. His hands were clenched tightly into fists and he stood quietly, barely breathing, as a plan began to form in his mind. Rage was coursing through his veins and he glared at the window across the room as the solution to his problem clicked into place.

There were only two of them; he could take them.... one at a time. Rico crouched low and crawled behind the counter until he was beside the child. There was an open cellar door on the other side of the counter so he quickly picked up the little girl and made his way down the steps. It was a dirt cellar and was filled with old crates, boxes and broken garden tools. There were no windows and the only light that permeated the darkness came from the open doorway above him. He laid the little girl down behind some crates and hurried over to the stairs. Glancing around the cellar he spied the handle of a broken hoe and grabbed it as he scrambled to hide beneath the open stairway. There were only six steps to the cellar floor but they would be enough if his plan worked.

A maniacal grin crossed his features as he heard footsteps cross the front porch and he held his breath as someone pounded on the front door.

"Come on in. "he whispered eagerly as his hands tightened around the wooden handle.

TBC

Translations:

Que esta pasando = what's happening

Chota = cops, police

Chale= "no way"


	4. Chapter 4

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Thank you so much for you reviews. I truly appreciate them.

Chapter 4:

Don rapped loudly on the screen door and called out in a booming voice. "F B I."

No answer.

He pulled off his sunglasses as he stepped over to one of the windows and tried to peer through the dirty glass; Don tried to rub a clear area on the glass, but it seemed that the window was just as dirty on the inside, because all he could really make out were shadows and shapes of pieces of furniture. By all outward appearances the house seemed to be deserted but the hair was beginning to stand up on the back of his neck, a sure sign to him that something just wasn't as it should be.

The agent strolled off of the porch and decided to check around the back of the house. He slowed down as he rounded the corner and studied the windows in the back of the small building. Dirty…and empty, just like the front windows with the exception of one of them. That one had some kind of cloth covering it to keep out any prying eyes. "_Why_ _that one and not the others." _he wondered. Yet, he saw nothing that would lend credence to his uneasiness but the feeling still persisted. He stepped up to the back door and tried to open it but was not surprised to find that it was locked,

Don wearily rubbed at the sweat on his brow and focused on the back yard of the house. Off to one side was a large stack of wooden and plastic crates that would be needed for the harvest and there was a narrow dirt road that ran between the onion fields. The access road looked as if it was only wide enough for one vehicle and extended as far as the eye could see.

"_Probably goes through these two fields and out to the desert, that way the farmer would have access to his entire crop by vehicle." _Don mused as he walked slowly around the house_ "The tracks probably belonged to the farmer and he was just getting things ready for the harvest_." He shook his head irritably. "I'm getting edgy over nothing." he muttered.

The agent glanced around for his brother and noted that he had moved up near the SUV. Charlie had removed his blazer and had tied the arms of the jacket around his waist to leave his hands free.

"Hey Chuck, are you almost finished?"

His brother looked up and glared at him at the use of the hated nickname. "Almost, I just need a few more minutes to finish up. " He said with his pencil hovering over the clipboard. "And don't call me Chuck."

Don grinned and wiped the sweat from his upper lip. "It's pretty hot out here buddy."

"No kidding? " Charlie retorted sarcastically. "Look, just give me a couple of more minutes and we can get out of here. "

Don sighed and moved over to stand beside of his SUV. "I'll give you another ten minutes Charlie and then I'm out of here. " He crossed his arms and leaned back against the car until he realized how dusty it was.

"Oh, man." he said as he straightened up almost immediately and started brushing the dust from his sleeves and the back of his jacket. "You owe me a car wash bro."

Charlie looked up and snickered. "I don't think the car is the only thing that is going to need a bath. "

"Ha, ha, Charlie. "

Don stepped away from the car and the house once again caught his eye. There it was again, that feeling that there was something else going on at this farm. Something dark and menacing, hiding beneath the quiet exterior of the house.

Don narrowed his eyes and studied the house thoughtfully as he approached the front porch. His eyes drifted downward to the footprints in the sand, now mingled with his own prints as well as Charlie's. The agent decided to take another look in the window but as he crossed the porch he changed his mind and stopped in front of the door.

He caught movement out of the corner of his eye and glanced sideways as Charlie approached the edge of the porch.

"What are you doing? I thought you said that we couldn't go inside the store."

"Relax, I'm just checking to see if the door is locked. I noticed some recent tire tracks and I just want to make sure everything is okay." He shook his head. "It's probably nothing."

"Could have been the owner checking up on things." Charlie mumbled absently as his thoughts began to drift back to the clipboard.

"Maybe." Don responded as he pulled open the screen door. The door protested with a loud, grinding squeak when he opened it but what it revealed was enough to convince him that his "gut feeling" had been right all along.

"I was afraid of this." Don commented as he bent down to examine the lock. "It looks like someone did break in." He paused momentarily as he carefully checked the door. "Yeah, just like I thought." He glanced at Charlie. "It's definitely broken; the door jamb on the inside is all busted up."

Charlie looked around nervously. "Do you think they're still here?"

"Not likely Charlie. I also found footprints of someone going in and coming out of the store…probably cleaned the place out already."

"Just be careful." Charlie said with another glance around. "Maybe I should come in with you."

"No. I want you to stay out here. " Don stopped with his hand on the door knob and added in a softer tone of voice. "Don't worry Charlie. It looks like an old break, not a recent one. I'll just take a quick look around and report what I've found." He pushed the door open with the toe of his shoe and called over his shoulder. "Don't wander off now."

Charlie rolled his eyes at him. "I'm not going anywhere. You have the keys... remember?"

Don chuckled and pushed the door open, catching it with his hand as it swung back toward him. His smile faded as held it open and stood quietly in the doorway. He scanned the room carefully, watching for any movements or sounds that would let him know if anyone was still around.

He found himself in a small hallway with an open archway on his left that led to the main store center. There were three rooms on his right so he decided to start with the one that had the door open. It turned out to be a small bedroom that contained a twin bed and a dresser. A naked light bulb hung from a ceiling fixture in the center of the room, but what disturbed Don the most was the fact that the bed covers were in disarray, proving that someone had been staying there. This was the room that had the covering over the window; a sheet had been nailed to the top of the window casement, assuring that the occupant would have the utmost privacy.

He opened the door to the next room to find a much smaller one. This one had been turned into a storage room and there were shelves loaded with gardening tools, baskets and even a plastic bag containing straw hats standing upright in a corner.

The next room proved to be the bathroom which he backed out of almost immediately. He closed the door quickly and moved down the hallway. The smell of urine had been overwhelming in the small room and he didn't envy the farmer when it was time for him to clean up the place.

From the outside all of the windows had appeared closed but Don could feel a breeze circulate through the house and his brow wrinkled in puzzlement. There had been a small window in the storage room and he poked his head back into the room to take a closer look at it. He noticed a crack in the glass near the bottom of the window seal that was wide enough to let the air flow into the room and as he examined it the faint smell of cigarette smoke wafted in from another part of the house. Instantly on guard, his head came up immediately and his hand hovered over his gun holster. "_Was someone still here? " _

Don cautiously moved toward the cigarette smoke and crossed the hallway to the left side of the house until he found a crushed cigarette lying on the wooden floor. He squatted down and pulled a pair of tweezers from his pocket and picked up the cigarette butt, sniffing at it before returning it to the floor. It was fresh; someone had been here, and not very long ago. There were other butts scattered across the room along with empty liquor bottles and wadded up fast food bags.

From his position on the floor he perused the room carefully. A beetle caught his eye and he watched it crawl through the garbage and then down between the wide slats of the wooden floor. He couldn't help but wonder how safe the floor actually was because whatever type of floor covering had been there had disappeared a long time ago and there were some fairly large gaps between some of the wooden slats. A few area rugs had been pushed to the side and a small stack of wooden tiles were piled in a corner. Apparently the farmer intended to make a few repairs before opening the store; and from Don's point of view, that would be a very wise decision on the part of the farmer. The back door caught his eye and he could see the sunlight filtering through a space between the door and the frame, which explained how the breeze, and the dust, was able to circulate throughout the house.

Don stood up and moved silently through the room. There was a counter in the back of the room with a row of empty shelves behind it. Two more rows of shelves lined the walls on both sides of the room but what really caught his eye, were the footprints that led across the dusty floor. Several large set of booted footprints and one set of a child's footprints but there was something else too; a strange odor permeated the room.

Don sniffed at the air and wrinkled his nose as other smells became apparent to him. It was hot in the small, closed up house and the heat would have been stifling if not for the occasional breeze that managed to get through the cracks; still, the acrid odors trapped within the small space seemed to intensify with the soaring outside temperature. The smell of the garbage almost made him gag; there must have been food left in some of those bags, but there was another smell underneath it all, a sickly sweet smell, that somehow seemed familiar but one that he couldn't put a name to yet.

His mind began to race with a number of questions as his eyes came to rest on the child's footprints. Was this Charlie's anomaly? Could the kidnapper have brought the little girl here…and was this really the first crime scene? Should he leave now and call for back up? But he dismissed that last question almost as soon as he thought of it because he had no tangible evidence that anything else was going on other than the fact that the house had been broken into.

A sudden gust of wind blew through the cracks in the door and whistled loudly around the small house and although he could hear no other sounds, Don had the uneasy feeling that he wasn't alone.

The agent slowly followed the trail of footprints through the room, noting the half empty bottle of tequila and the pack of cigarettes that were lying on the table top.

There was a small box of groceries setting on top of the counter and he glanced at its contents. Bread, a jar of peanut butter, some crackers, a few canned goods and a pack of chocolate chip cookies were packed neatly within the carton. Hardly the type of groceries that a kidnapper would buy. It was beginning to look more and more like a family of immigrants had decided to make the old house their home. Don noticed a cooler on the floor beneath the counter and nudged the lid open with the toe of his shoe. It was filled to the top with water bottles and soda cans. He knelt down to touch the bottles; they were barely cold so either they had just been put in the cooler or it had been there long enough for the ice packs to melt.

Don relaxed a little, not the kidnapper he told himself, probably just a family of illegal immigrants that had managed to get across the border. His eyes drifted to an open door on the other side of the counter and he stepped over to check it out.

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Rico hunched under the stairway and stared upward as if he could actually see the agent walking around above him. He held his breath and listened intently...…the man was close to the doorway now so the Mexican quickly shifted his position to get ready for the agents descent.

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Don stood at the top of the stairs and slid a small flashlight from his jacket pocket. He stared downward as a small stream of light illuminated the stairway and seeped into the dark cellar below but his vision was limited so he moved forward until he was standing on the top step. The agent tilted his head to the side; straining to hear any sounds that might be coming from below him. His experienced ear picked up the faintest whisper of a sound but before he could identify it, a gust of wind swirled through the cracks of the back door drowning it out, prompting Don to take another step down the stairs.

From the second step, Don panned the flashlight through the darkness, creating shadows that seemed to come to life and dance crazily around him. Broken garden tools and crates lay in piles around the cellar but as he turned to go back up the stairs something else caught his eye and he instinctively stepped forward. With one foot on the third step and one on the second he focused the light on a point in front of one of the crates.

Don drew in a quick breath as the light revealed a small hand....a child's hand sticking out from behind one of the broken crates and suddenly, with absolutely clarity, he identified the elusive smell; it was chloroform.

Swiftly, the agent unsnapped his holster and slid out his gun, suddenly realizing the vulnerable position that he was in. Anxiously, he turned around on the stairs and focused the flashlight between the steps, but as he tried to bring his foot back up something suddenly grabbed his ankle. Don tried to aim a shot at the man that was holding onto him and simultaneously maintain his balance, but he had to drop the flashlight to grab the rail. Despite his best efforts he fell backwards, tumbling down the stairs. He only fell down four stairs but he landed hard, knocking the breath out of him and sending his gun flying off in a different direction. Don desperately scrambled to his knees but Rico darted out from behind the stairway before he had a chance to gain his footing and slammed the pole against the side of his head. Don collapsed without a sound.....out cold from the force of the blow.

Rico fell to his knees and scrambled around looking for the agent's gun. He grinned when his hand closed around it and he jumped to his feet. Picking up the flashlight he bent over to get a closer look at the agent. Blood was already coursing down the side of the man's face, but he was still alive....at least for now. He started to rise but suddenly a loud bang sounded from above him and footsteps could be heard overhead.

"Don. It's time to go." A voice called out from the front door.

The sound of the man's voice wiped the sneer from Rico's face; he had forgottoen about the other agent. He froze in mid step and as he listened to the footsteps echoing overhead his eyes drifted back to the stairway. It had worked once, maybe it would work again, and if not, he had a gun now. He positioned the flashlight so that the light would shine upon the fallen agent and scurried back to hide beneath the stairs.

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Charlie paced back and forth on the front orch as he waited anxiously for Don to come out. It had only been ten minutes since his brother had entered the house but Charlie couldn't wait any longer. Even though Don had told him to wait outside, he impatiently flung the screen door open and stormed into the house..

"Don. It's time to go." He shouted, but there was no answer and only eerie silence greeted his call.

His pulse quickened as he checked each of the rooms but as his continued efforts failed to find Don, he began to grow uneasy. Fear for his brother's safety spurred him forward and he crossed the hall to the main store center.

"Don." Charlie called .out "This isn't funny. If you want to get back to LA by nine-thirty we need to leave now."

Still no answer.

He noticed the back door and hurried over to it, thinking that Don had gone out the back way but to his consternation he found it locked from the inside. Puzzled and worried now he turned around and veered toward the open cellar door.

The mathematician stood at the top of the stairs and peered down into the dark cellar. He didn't have a flashlight with him but as his eyes focused on a light at the base of the stairs they widened in horror at the vision he saw there; his brother was lying motionless at the bottom of the stairway. With the thought that Don had somehow fallen down the stairs, he dropped the clip board with a loud thud and darted down the stairway. It never occurred to him that Don's fall could be anything other than an accident.

"Don!" he cried out in anguish. "Hey Don! Are you…..? ""

The rest of his words ended in a scream when something grabbed his ankle and he lost his balance. He hit the steps hard and tumbled quickly to the bottom, landing just a few feet from Don. Charlie lay there, momentarily stunned, before gingerly pulling himself up to his knees. But his thoughts turned quickly to his brother and he crawled over to the agent's side. He had just stretched out his hand to check Don's pulse when Rico launched his attacked.

Charlie never saw Rico sneak around the stairs but he caught a glimpse of a large stick just before it connected with his head. Pain filled his mind and then everything exploded into a bright light before he collapsed into darkness. Unconscious, he pitched forward, landing on top of his brother's body.

Exultant, Rico stared at the bodies of the two agents The force of the blow had broken the pole and a piece of it had splintered off to another part of the cellar. He tossed the remaining peice to the floor and picked up the flashlight. As he viewed his handi-work, his breathing began to slow down and the adrenaline rush dissipated. His emotional outrage was suddenly replaced with feelings of uncertainty and fear. The Mexican paced nervously around the agents, mumbling frantically out loud. What should he do? He really didn't have a choice, he would have to kill them and he raised the gun in his hand and pointed it at the still bodies. Idly, he wondered if one bullet could kill them both, and then he put the muzzle of the gun directly against Charlie's back. But as his finger tightened on the trigger, doubt began to flood his mind, and he pulled the gun back, slowly releasing the trigger before jamming the gun into the waistband of his jeans.

Anxiously, he began to pace around them again. He rubbed his free hand through his hair as he tried to figure out what to do. He was in over his head… he had really done it this time….attacking two federal agents. My god, what had he been thinking, he should have just run out of the back door when he had the chance. He could have been long gone and grabbed another kid somewhere else.

Rico lowered his head and stared at the two unconscious men. They would have to die, one way or another, but he couldn't do this alone and suddenly his eyes lit up with hope. He would call Juan. His cousin was smart and he would know the best way to handle this. Yes, that is what he would do, but first he would tie the agents up and make certain that they couldn't cause him any further trouble.


	5. Chapter 5

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews and to show my appreciation for them and the alerts I've decided to give you a bonus chapter. (Thanks to Mrs. GC for giving me the suggestion.)

Chapter 5:

Walt pulled into the parking area behind O'Reilly's Bar and Grill and circled around to find a parking space. The place was really busy tonight and he had just decided to give up on the idea when he saw a vehicle pull out of one. He quickly seized his opportunity and parked his truck before several other drivers could dodge in ahead of him.

O'Reilly's offered the best burgers in the LA area at least that was how Walt saw it anyway. But it wasn't just the food that brought in the crowd, the bar and grill was also a favorite hang out for off-duty law personnel, particularly members of the LAPD and its retired officers.

After giving his statement to Agent Granger, Walt had returned to the marina where he moored his boat. He had bought the yacht at one of the police auctions that had been held to sell off confiscated goods from convicted criminals, but it had needed a number of repairs and he had spent the last eight years remodeling the boat and getting it ready for his retirement. Two months ago Walt had completed them and moved into the boat, making it his new home. But before he could sail her he had one more thing to do and that was proving to be more difficult than any of the other repairs that he had encountered.

He opened the door to the grill and stood aside to let a young couple pass through before stepping inside the bar room. Walt weaved his way through the crowd responding to the friendly greetings that were called out to him by waving a hand or with a nod of his head.. But it was difficult for him to be happy after the events of the day and he sighed heavily as he sat down on the bar stool and picked up a menu.

"This ones on the house Walt."

The cheerful voice startled him out of his dark revere as he looked up to meet the eyes of his friend, Patrick O'Reilly. White haired with mischievous green eyes, Patrick was not only the owner of the bar and grill but was also the main bartender as well. It was a job that he enjoyed, he had confided to Walt, because it gave him the opportunity to socialize with his many friends.

Walt glanced at the mug of cold beer in front of him and then back at his friend with a brow furrowed in puzzlement. "I don't understand….what is this for?"

"Why…you're a hero Walt. I saw you on TV, sitting in the ambulance…..at the park where that little girl was kidnapped." It was Patrick's turn to look puzzled. "That was you….right?"

"Yeah, that was me." he said a little gruffly as he took a sip of the beer. "But I'm no hero; the guy got away with the kid…remember?" He added bitterly and took another drink.

The bartender studied his friend thoughtfully before speaking. "What's up with you Walt?" He tilted his head to study the cut on his friend's temple. "How badly were you hurt anyway?"

Walt ran a hand through his hair and shrugged dispiritedly. "Not bad….just a bump."

"So what's the problem man?" He leaned forward with his elbows on the bar. "You made a heroic effort today…you should be proud of that."

Walt dropped his eyes to stare at his beer. "I failed Pat. That poor little girl was crying, and calling for her mommy…..and I had a chance to help her….but I couldn't hold on."

He held his hands up in front of him like they had betrayed him. "The arthritis is getting worse now and I just couldn't close my hands tight enough to get a good grip on the truck." His voice dropped to almost a whisper. "She was so scared and that bastard just kept yelling at her to shut up."

"You can't beat yourself up over this Walt. You did the best that you could." Pat sighed and shook his head. "Look, Walt, you've got to find a balance here. Even though you've had a distinguished career, that last case before you retired almost tore you to pieces. You have forgoten about all of the many lives that you have saved over the years and are just focusing on the ones that you were unable to help."

O'Reilly grabbed a glass and poured himself a beer. "No matter how hard we try my friend, we can't save them all. You have to learn to accept that and get on with your life." The Irishman was a retired officer himself so he knew what Walt was going through and he watched him sadly as he took a sip of the beer.

"How did you find you're balance?"

Pat rubbed his temple and sighed. "Walt it took me a long time to come to grips with the fact that I couldn't save everyone, until I finally accepted the fact that I am only human, not a superhero." He patted his friends forearm. "And that is what you are going to have to do."

O'Reilly glanced at the TV that was mounted over the bar. The news broadcast was running the video from the kidnapping. He nudged Walt and nodded at the set. "Besides, you did what you could; it's up to the FBI to find her now."

Walt watched as the reporter identified Don and his team at the crime scene. The video followed them as they investigated the park and interviewed the little girls parents.

"He feels the same way."

Patrick glanced over. "Who feels the same way?"

Walt nodded at Don. "The lead agent, Don Eppes."

"Why do you say that?"

"I talked to him today….I saw it in his eyes." Walt took another sip of beer. "He's losing confidence in himself, becoming afraid that even with all of his efforts, he's not going to make a difference."

"He looks pretty young to be reaching that point." Pat observed.

Another thought suddenly occurred to the retired officer. "Pat, have you ever gotten the impression that you knew someone, but you couldn't place where you had met them?"

"Sure, happens to me all of the time. Why?"

He nodded toward the TV and said. "I know I've met him before, him and his brother, but for the life of me I just can't place them."

O'Reilly scoffed. "Where have you been for the last few years? They've both been in the news a lot lately. His brother is some kind of genius…smart like Einstein. I think he's a professor over at CalSci, but he also consults for the FBI. You probably saw them on TV or at LAPD headquarters."

"How do you know so much about them? "

Patrick leaned forward. "I hear a lot of stuff in here, and yeah, I've heard some people bring up their names. "

"So. " Walt prompted. "What kind of "stuff" did you here about them? "

"Well, for one thing, from what I hear, a lot of the professor's ideas are really "out there", you know, "off the wall". But the weird thing is….they all seem to work. Eppes's team has an eighty-five percent solve rate…the highest nationwide, and that's saying something."

Walt grinned for the first time that evening. "You sound like a fan Pat."

"Maybe I am, but I gotta tell you, anyone that can consistently win against the bad guys is alright in my book."

"I'll have to agree with you on that one." Walt raised his mug in a salute before taking a large gulp of beer.

"Hey OReilly! How about some service over here?" A loud voice boomed from the end of the bar.

As Patrick hurried to the other end of the bar, Walt's attention drifted back to the newscast. The little girl's picture flashed across the screen followed by the earlier video of her parents as they made another appeal to the kidnapper.

Pat had returned and Walt turned to his friend with unshed tears glistening in his blue eyes and said softly.

"You know I've been a cop for too long to believe in miracles but I sure hope that the professor can find something that will help his brother locate that little girl before it's too late."

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Something was tickling his cheek, but then again, maybe tickling wasn't the right word to use. The feather light touch and constant movement, combined with the pain in his head was just about as much as he could take. Conscious thought began to trickle back to him in disjointed images and nothing was making any sense to him. He tried to open his eyes but his heavy lids remained closed. Don would have drifted off again but the constant movement against his face was really becoming annoying and there was something else too…. something wet was dripping down the side of his face. He'd had enough of this; it was time to put an end to it.

Don tried to lift his head but that motion only intensified the pain and as a muffled groan escaped from his throat, he lay still once again. The annoying sensation seemed to stop for a moment but started up almost immediately. Next he tried to knock it away with his hands but he couldn't seem to move them; his arms felt heavy and unresponsive. Puzzled, he tried again to open his eyes and this time he was more successful, but it did him little good, because he found himself in total darkness. The agent blinked his eyes rapidly now, desperately trying to clear his vision as his memory returned and his survival instincts kicked in. He systematically began to assess his situation beginning with his hands. He could feel something painfully cutting into his wrists as well as his ankles and he was lying on the ground because he could feel dirt beneath his cheek. A gag had been stuffed into his mouth and although he couldn't see it, he knew that the liquid dripping down the side of his face was his own blood. The incessant pounding in his head was finally starting to subside, allowing Don time to clear his head and focus on his surroundings.

The agent lay quietly on the ground while his eyes adjusted to the darkness. Black shapes began to form around him and changed to dark grays, eventually morphing into various shades of dusty browns. He lifted his head gingerly and peered at the ground in front of him, trying to see what was brushing up against his face. His eyes widened suddenly and an uncontrollable shudder passed through his body as he realized that the feather light touch that he had been feeling against his cheek had been made by the whiskers of a rat as it sniffed at his face. The gag muffled his surprised yell and he jerked backwards, repulsed by the close proximity of the rat. His sudden movement startled the rodent and sent it scurrying off into the darker shadows of the cellar.

Don exhaled in relief but narrowed his eyes and peered nervously around the darkened room in search of the rat or any other possible threats. His eyes came to rest on a few dull rays of sunlight that were slicing through the darkness. Dusty motes floated through the sparse rays and his eyes followed their trail upward to the cracks in the ceiling. "Still daylight. "he thought to himself. That meant that he hadn't been unconscious for very long so hopefully he wasn't hurt too badly after all.

.A shadow crossed over him and dust particles drifted downward. The agent quickly turned his head to the side and closed his eyes to try and protect them from the falling dust.

"_Not a ceiling_." he thought to himself, "_but a floor_." He was lying underneath an old wooden floor and someone was walking above him. At first he thought he was in a basement but then he changed his mind and decided it had to be some kind of dirt cellar.

Full memory returned and with it the realization that he hadn't come to the farm house alone. Charlie was here somewhere as well as the missing child. He tried to turn over to look for them but he found that he was lying up against a pile of boxes and that they blocked his view of the rest of the cellar. Don tried to swallow and control his growing panic but failed miserably since he didn't have enough saliva left to produce a good swallow.

"_Where was Charlie…..was he hurt too? What about the little girl… he had seen her hand but she wasn't moving. Had the man already killed her….but then why was he still alive? "_

Loud voices and stomping feet erupted from overhead, drawing his attention back to the floor above him. Don twisted his head around with hopes of hearing what was being said above him.

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Upstairs Rico was nervously watching his younger cousin. After he had knocked out the agents and tied them up the Mexican had panicked and called Juan for help: a decision that he was now beginning to regret.

Juan was more educated than his older cousin and unlike Rico; he fit in well with the Californian lifestyle. He worked out to stay in shape and with his well-manicured hairstyle and trim goatee; he caught the eye of many of the ladies around the local towns. But to maintain this appearance, he needed money and although he worked in a small factory during the day, his real business was smuggling drugs in from Mexico. And now Rico had put all of that into jeopardy.

"What in the freaking hell is the matter with you Rico!" Juan Chavez stormed around the small room cursing his cousin for the fourth time in the ten minutes since he had arrived.

"Que desmadre! How could you be stupid enough to attack two federal agents? Man, they are going to be all over us!" This was followed by more cursing in both Spanish and English.

"Look man, I didn't know they would come back here. I mean….the police haven't been out here in months. How was I supposed to know?" Rico retorted in his own defense, flinging his arms angrily into the air as he made his own path around the room.

Juan stopped suddenly and turned around to face the older man. "And the little girl? What about her?"

Rico stopped abruptly. "She's mine man. We get rid of the other two, but she's mine!"

"You are sick Rico. At least I go for grown women. I'm ashamed to say that you're my cousin." Out of habit, Juan rubbed his finger over his mustache as he glared at his cousin.

"Leave me alone! I can't help it if that's what I like." The older man muttered defiantly.

Juan pulled out a chair and motioned for his cousin to do the same. "Okay. First thing we have to do is get rid of that car." he said, letting his eyes drift toward the window and the suburban parked outside. "The Fed's can track it here, man." He started to look away from the window but then stopped as he took another glance. "Where's you're car?"

"Julio took it to go to a party. I told him to keep it until tomorrow. "

"You told Julio about this?!"

"No. He came over here and tried to get me to go with him to a party. He didn't see anyone so I sent him away before he figured out what was going on. "

"At least you were smart about that. Call him up and tell him to keep it for a couple of days. Tell him that you and I are going away and you won't need it for a while. "

"What about the feds?" Rico asked, pointing toward the basement.

"First things first, man. We'll drive the car somewhere and dump it far away from here. That way the Fed's will be looking in the wrong direction. "His dark eyes narrowed and he studied his cousin's face." What about their cell phones, did you get them? Because they can be tracked too man."

Anger flared in Rico's eyes. "Do you take me for a fool? Of course I've got them!" He pushed away from the table and went into another room. He hurried back carrying an old onion sack and dumped its contents unceremoniously on the table. The Eppes's cell phones, along with Don's badge, handcuffs and other personal items lay scattered across the table top.

"I thought you said there were two of them?"

"There are two of them."

Juan pointed at the items on the table. "Then how come there is only one badge?"

"The other one has a badge but it looks a little different." He rummaged around in the bag. "Here it is. It just got stuck." He hesitated and then added. "You know my English is not very good, so I don't know what that badge says."

"He's not an agent, but he works for them. " Juan said as he studied Charlie's badge and then he picked up Don's. "They have the same last name…could be brothers or cousins."

Juan glanced over the items and then raised an eyebrow at his cousin. "Are you going to try and convince me that they did not have any money on them?"

Rico hesitated a moment then went to the counter behind him and picked up the two wallets. He tossed them on the table and grinned at his cousin.

"They are empty… I already took the money."

"I am not going to do this for free Rico. Not even for you. Leave the wallets here; we can sell the credit cards later." Juan nodded his head toward the counter. "What's in the bag?"

Rico took up a protective stance in front of Charlie's bag. "It is a laptop, an expensive laptop. I am going to sell it and make a lot of money. I will give you half for your help tonight."

Juan shook his head and issued another string of curses in Spanish. "You really are an idiot." He spoke slowly so that his cousin would understand. "If you keep it, they…will…find…you. There is a GPS chip inside of it too!" He raised his hand to halt his cousin's protest.

"The phones and the laptop have to go back in the car…….and they stay with the car." He stood up and leaned over it, resting his hands flat on the table top. "You got that Rico?"

Red-faced and mumbling to himself, Rico turned and grabbed Charlie's laptop. He tossed it on the table and with a glare at his cousin; he began to stuff everything but the phones back into the onion bag.

Juan walked to the window and stared at the suburban and then glanced sideways at his cousin.

"They were carrying guns, weren't they? " He asked in a quiet voice. "What did you do with them? "

Rico straightened up slowly and planted both of his feet firmly on the floor. He stared defiantly at his cousin and then lifted his shirt, revealing the Glock shoved into the waistband of his pants.

"Only the agent had a gun and this one I will keep for myself."

Juan crossed his arms across his chest and warily eyed Rico. He could tell from the older man's stance that he wasn't going to give up the agents gun.. "Very well, but you do know that it can be traced back to him, don't you?" He returned to the table and made sure that everything had been put in the bag.

"Are you sure they can't get out?"

"I knocked 'em both out and tied 'em up real tight. They ain't going any where."

"And the kid?"

"Drugged her. She won't be waking up anytime soon. "

"Show me where they are?"

"I told you man. I've got them all tied up!"

"Show me!" Juan ordered impatiently.

TBC

A/N: Special note to Mrs. GC. I'm not really sure how many chapters there will be because although the story is finished, as I review and edit the chapters, the number of chapters tends to increase.


	6. Chapter 6

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: A note of warning to my Spanish readers. To bring realism to Juan and Rico's characters they will curse occasionally throughout the story. It is not meant to offend anyone but I feel it lends credence to their characters.

I'll be out of town on the 23rd and 24th of May and I won't be able to post the next chapter until the following weekend. I hope to see you then.

As always, thank you for the reviews.

Chapter 6:

Muttering under his breath, Rico angrily pulled the door open and stomped down the stairway with his cousin following closely behind him.

Don squinted his eyes against the sunlight that suddenly flooded the dark cellar and watched with trepidation as two men came into view. It was the first time that he had seen his assailant and was surprised to discover that there were two of them. Serial rapists tended to act alone, not in pairs, and this revelation came as a complete surprise to him.

They descended the stairs rapidly and disappeared from his sight. The stack of crates that he was lying against blocked them from his view but it didn't prevent him from hearing what they were saying.

Juan strode over to Charlie's body and squatted down beside of him. With a loud grunt he flipped the mathematician over so that he was lying on his back.

Charlie winced as a jumbled mix of disjointed voices and loud thumps began to penetrate his consciousness and his body shuddered reflexively from the pain that the deafening noises inflicted upon his mind. Flashes of abstract images followed the sounds that somehow managed to keep in time with the pain that was throbbing through his skull. The pain was so severe that he barely registered the movement of his body until his head hit the ground. A muffled moan escaped through the gag in his mouth as the jarring motion sent new sensations of pain to his brain and mounted to such intensity that it sent his mind reeling back into sweet oblivion.

Juan pried Charlie's eyes open to see if he was awake.

"This one is still unconscious." He grinned up at Rico. "What did you hit him with anyway?"

The older man pointed to a piece of the broken pole. "The same thing that I hit the other one with, only it broke in half when I slugged this guy with it."

"It'll be a long time before he wakes up." Juan said as he stood up and met his cousin's eye. "And from the way that he looks, I doubt that he ever will."

Dismissing Charlie as if he was no longer a threat, the Mexican walked around the crates to check out the other agent.

Juan bent down on one knee and pulled Don's head roughly around so that he could get a better look at him in the dim light. He forced the agents eyelids open and then pulled him further into the light when he discovered that the agent was conscious.

"This one is awake." He said and slapped Don hard across the face. "Wake up gabacho! It will do you no good to pretend."

Don blinked to clear his vision, clenching his teeth against the pain that the slap had generated and stared defiantly up at the two men.

Juan grinned menacingly at him. "It is too bad for you that you chose to come out here today…..you and you're brother." He paused and scratched at his goatee. "The other one is you're brother….right?"

Don refused to respond and just glared at the man.

"There is a bright side to this Agent Eppes." He leaned in closer, his eyes lit with a malignant glow. "The two of you will get to die together." His right hand closed in a fist and he abruptly punched the agent in the jaw.

Don's eyes closed as he once again drifted toward unconsciousness.

The Mexicans shared a laugh at Don's expense and headed back toward the stairs but Juan paused momentarily as he looked at the sleeping child. He shook his head and glanced sideways at his cousin before he turned away and walked back toward the stairs.

"Que jodida/o." He muttered under his breath and rapidly climbed the stairs.

Rico was close enough to hear Juan's mumbled words and eyed Juan angrily as he followed him back up the stairway.

"We leave now." Juan said as soon as his foot hit the top stair. "If we move fast enough we may be able to get rid of the car before the Fed's even find out that these guys are missing."

The younger man thumbed a finger at Charlie's laptop as he passed by the table. "Grab that and the phones and let's get out of here. " His tone of voice left no room for argument and Rico hurried to comply with his orders.

Rico closed the front door behind him with a loud bang, followed by another one as the screen door slammed shut, and rushed over to the SUV. Pulling Don's keys from his pocket he climbed in and dumped everything on the passenger seat. He was so intent on starting the car that he jumped when Juan knocked on the driver's side window. It took him a few seconds to locate the right button for the window and he found himself faced with an impatient cousin when it was finally lowered.

"What took you so long?" Juan hissed, but didn't give the other man time to answer. "Stay close, but do not speed or break any of the traffic laws. Do you understand?"

"Of course." Rico uttered indignantly. ""I am not an idiot!"

Juan gritted his teeth and spoke in a dangerously calm voice. "I warn you Rico, push me any further and I may forget that you are my cousin. "

The older Mexican lowered his eyes and nodded his head. "Sure Juan….I'll do whatever you say."

"Good. Follow me and once we dump the car, we'll come back here and finish them off." He turned on his heel, climbed into his truck and pulled out immediately, leaving a cloud of dust in his wake.

Rico floored the accelerator of Don's SUV and raced down the dirt road to catch up with his cousin.

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Don had pretended that the Mexican had knocked him out and breathed a little easier as he watched the men climb the stairs. The cellar door had been closed, but not al the way, making it easier for the agent to hear the men's conversation. He stared at the floor above him, following the sound of their footsteps as they crossed the room.

When he heard he front doors slam shut the agent let his head fall back on the ground and closed his eyes in relief as he heard the cars drive away. Don tried to force himself to wait at least five minutes before making any attempt to get his hands free, just in case they came back for something, but his patience ran out at two minutes and thirty seconds. He had heard the Mexicans comments about Charlie's condition and now an overwhelming fear for his brother's safety was driving him to move faster.

Convinced that they were alone, he rolled over and sat up, scooting backwards until his back was against the crates. He brought his knees up and rested his forehead against them when he broke out in a cold sweat and the room suddenly began to spin around him. He kept his eyes closed as a wave of nausea came over him but finally the sensations subsided and he was able to slide his hands beneath his rear end and push them forward. He tugged one foot through the gap between his arms and then struggled to get the other one through. The effort had his muscles screaming in pain but he was determined to get free and didn't stop until he was finally able to bring his bound hands up and jerk the gag from his mouth.

Don didn't waste anytime though; he quickly brought his wrists up to his mouth and started tearing at his bonds. He wasn't bound with a rope, so it only took him a few minutes to tear through the cloth with his teeth. "_Finally." _He thought as the last of the cloth was ripped away and he rubbed his wrists briefly to restore the circulation.

His feet were next and after only a couple of minutes he had them untied but he stood up too quickly and had to sit down abruptly as a wave of dizziness washed over him. Gingerly he felt the lump and dried blood on the side of his head and was relieved to discover that it had finally stopped bleeding. Irritably, he berated himself for letting Rico catch him off guard.

"_Idiot." _He called himself, "_If he had just identified the smell sooner he never would have gone down the stairs without backup." _He forced those thoughts aside as his head cleared and he began to move again, slower this time, as he tried to avoid any further dizzy spells. Stopping wasn't an option however, he had to get them out of there before Rico and Juan returned to finish the job.

He stood up slowly, placing a hand on one of the crates to help maintain his balance as he moved around the pile of crates. His eyes had become accustomed to the dim light and he spotted the little girl almost immediately. He knelt down and felt for a pulse; at least the Mexican had been telling the truth, she was just asleep after all. He patted the top of her head lightly and whispered softly. "I'll be right back. "

Charlie was more of a concern right now, Don knew he was injured but he didn't know how badly he had been hurt. His eyes fell on a shadow lying on the floor not far from him.

"Charlie?" He called out desperately. "Charlie? Come on buddy, wake up."

Anxiously he bent down by his brother's side and quickly felt for a pulse. A relieved sob escaped his lips when he found a strong one beating beneath his fingertips. Pulling himself together, Don pulled the gag from Charlie's mouth and then untied his feet. Next he rolled him on his side so that he could free his hands. Rico had tied a particularly wicked knot in the cloth binding Charlie's hands and it had cut into his wrists making it harder to work the knot loose but he finally managed to untie him. Don gently rolled his brother back over and was relieved to see him begin to stir a few minutes later.

Charlie moaned and his head rolled to the side. Suddenly he started to cough and Don quickly brought him up to a sitting position and held him there until he stopped..

"Easy, bro. Just take it easy for a minute." Don said soothingly.

Charlie opened his eyes, blinking rapidly until his vision had cleared enough for him to make out his brother.

"Don? Are you okay?" He rasped out as he touched the side of his head. "Ow. I must have tripped on the stairs too."

"I'm okay Buddy and neither one of us tripped on the stairs. We had a little help getting to the bottom and we have to get out of here before they come back to finish the job."

"They?" Charlie asked, confusion clearly in the tone of his voice. "You mean the thieves that broke into the house?"

"No Charlie." Don said with a shake of his head. "I mean Samantha Wilkins kidnappers. You were right buddy, this was the first crime scene and the little girl is here."

Charlie whipped his head around and managed to say the little girl's name before he bent over holding his head in his hands. ""Oh man." He whispered.

Knowing all too well what his brother was experiencing Don patted him gently on the shoulder and said softly. "Try not to move too fast. You've been hit on the head and you may have a concussion. Are you hurt anywhere else?"

"I don't think so, but I have a doozey of a headache." Charlie mumbled as he felt the lump on the side of his head.

Don followed his hand and felt the bump and dried blood beneath his brother's curls.

"Yeah, well no surprise there and I have one to match it. It's a good thing that we Eppes have hard heads, huh?" Don said, hoping to ease the tension a little." He squeezed Charlie's shoulder. "Just don't move too fast for a while, okay? Trust me when I say to move slowly." He glanced around the room. "Look…just sit here while I have a look around."

Taking his own advice, Don stood up slowly and waited for the dizziness to abate. The agent was getting stronger now and the effects of the blow were beginning to subside. Except for a really bad headache he appeared to be coming out of it pretty good but he could handle that as long as the dizziness and nausea didn't return.

Don eyes drifted over to the missing child and he moved over to her side. She was still wearing her coat and was wrapped up in an old blanket. Sweat has plastered her hair to her face and he gently pushed it back behind her ear. As he leaned over to check her out the smell of the chloroform was unmistakable.

"Is she okay?"

Surprised, Don looked up. Charlie had somehow managed to get to his feet and was standing behind him.

"Yeah. But he drugged her and she'll probably be out for a while." He scooped her up in his arms and rose to his feet. "In the meantime, let's see if we can get out of here."

Don led the way up the stairway and waited at the top step for his brother to catch up. Charlie was still moving slowly and had to grip the rails to make it up the stairs. Don shoved the door open with his foot and eagerly stepped through the doorway. He froze for a minute when the bright light caught him off guard and he had to blink his eyes to get used to it.

Charlie had a rougher time however; the bright light intensified his headache and triggered the dizziness and nausea again. He was barely across the threshold when he dropped to his knees and immediately vomited on the top step.

Don gently laid the little girl down on the floor and twisted around to get a look at his brother.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Sure." Charlie mumbled, wiping the cold sweat from his brow. "Just give me a minute." He closed the cellar door with the hope that it would help keep the smell away from them and then slid backward, propping himself up against the door.

Don stood up and stepped around the counter to the cooler that he had noticed earlier and grabbed two water bottles out of it.

"Here." He said, handing his brother an unopened bottle of water. "It's warm, but it will help." He slid down the side of the door to sit beside of his brother and took a drink of his own water.

Charlie gratefully took the bottle and had to force himself to drink it slowly. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and glanced at his brother. It was the first time that he really got a good look at Don and he paused with the bottle pressed to his lips.

Don noticed and stopped in mid drink. "What?"

"Don, you look terrible…..there's blood all over the side of your face." Charlie stammered out; his eyes widened even further as he checked Don over for other injuries.

Don snorted. "Yeah? Well you don't look so good yourself pal."

"Oh. Right." Charlie shrugged and then pointed a sink behind the counter. "Do you think there is running water?"

"Only one way to find out." Don said, standing up. He bent down to put a hand under Charlie's arm as he struggled to stand up. Together they moved over to the sink and while Charlie leaned against it for support, Don turned on the faucet. They both shared a relieved smile as the water poured into the sink.

'I'm not sure I would drink it, but at least we can wash some of this blood off." Don observed as he cupped his hands and splashed the water on his face. Charlie took his turn and soon they both felt a little better.

"We can't stay here Charlie. They took the car so we'll have to make it out of here on foot."

Charlie glanced out the window before responding. "We have about three hours before it gets dark so we need to get moving."

Don picked up the little girl and they walked out to the porch. He laid her down on the floor and joined his brother in the clearing where the car had once stood.

The hot June sun beat down on them as they tried to figure out an escape route.

"The quickest way would be to follow the road but we could run right into them and that would end our escape pretty fast. " Don muttered.

"That would certainly be counter productive." Charlie mumbled as he put a hand over his eyes and studied the position of the sun. He turned and pointed in another direction, across one of the onion fields. There weren't any roads in that direction, only rows and rows of onion and Fava bean plants as far as the eye could see.

"This would be a more direct route back to Hesperia, plus we could stay hidden. If they don't come back until after dark, then they'll have to wait until morning to track us. By that time we could have a pretty good lead on them."

"This farm is at least a hundred acres Charlie and after that we would have to cross parts of the Mojave. It could take us days to cross it."

Despite the dire situation, Charlie rolled his eyes at his brother. "I know that Don, but we won't be crossing the whole farm, just that section over there and look in the distance. " He said pointing at some foothills that dotted the horizon. "If my calculations are correct, the southern edge of Hesperia is on the other side of that lower ridge.... right where the "mesa" connects with the town. We should be able to find someone there who can help us."

Don wasn't totally convinced though and Charlie could see the doubt in his eyes.

"Besides." he added. 'If we stick to the road, where they will look for us first, we only have a thirty per cent chance of survival."

"And if we try to make it to the foothills?"

"Fifty per cent…. providing we can find some supplies to take with us."

"The odds aren't great either way you look at them but I think that I'd rather take my chances with the Mojave than with those two Mexicans."

Charlie grimly met his brother's eyes. "It's not a sure thing. There's a good probability that we won't make it that way either."

Don rubbed his chin thoughtfully and considered their options. It was a hard call to make but as his eyes drifted back to the porch and the sleeping child he came to a decision. If the Mexicans caught her again she would suffer horribly before they finally killed her but if she died in the desert with them, then at least she would be with people that were trying to help her. A small consolation perhaps, but that death would be preferable to the other.

He turned back to face his brother. "I know that's a possibility Charlie, but I think you're right about this and at least we would have a chance this way. " He hooked an arm around his brother's neck and they headed back toward the porch. "Come on, let see what we can find to take with us."

When they got to the door he picked up Samantha and laid her inside on the floor, near the open door where she would be exposed to the greatest amount of fresh air.

"How long have they been gone?" Charlie asked as he began to search through the house.

"Roughly, around forty minutes." Don answered and stopped by the cooler. "We'll have to find something to carry the water in."

"Right." Charlie agreed. "I'll check in the other rooms."

"There's a storage room in the back. You might find something in there that we can use."

Don continued to search around the main room while Charlie left to check out the other rooms.

The first thing that caught Charlie's eye when he looked into the storage room was the bag of straw hats. He quickly opened the bag and turned it upside down, spilling its contents across the floor. He knelt down and sorted through them until he found three hats with chin straps that he thought would fit them. The smallest hat that he found was still too big for the little girl but the strap would help keep it on her head so that she wouldn't lose it when the wind blew. And she couldn't afford to lose it; none of them could, if they expected to survive their trek across the desert.

He spied a clean blanket sitting on the shelf and stuffed it into the empty bag along with the hats and then emptied out another bag containing baskets; they were going to need two bags to split the load between them. Nothing else in the room would have been of any use to them so he moved on to the bedroom.

He pulled open the dresser drawers but they were all empty. He headed for the door but as he turned to leave he spied his blazer and Don's jacket lying on the floor by the bed. Charlie picked them up and made his way back to the main counter; they would need them later on when the sun went down and the desert floor began to cool off.

"I found two bags that we can use and they have really long drawstrings on them so we should be able to hang them across our shoulders. It'll make it easier for us to carry and distribute the weight of the water bottles. "

Charlie knelt down and immediately began to fill the bags with the water bottles, dividing them equally between the two bags.

"I found a small loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a pack of chocolate chip cookies in the box of groceries." Don said as he placed the items next to Charlie and the bags.

"We can add ten sixteen ounce bottles of water to that list. " Charlie said as he added the groceries to the bags.

Don was still looking around the room and returned with a pack of matches and some plastic knives.

"It's not much but it will have to do." Don muttered. "The only weapons that I could find were these handles from broken garden tools and we both know from first hand experience how effective they can be."

Charlie swallowed hard and took the one that Don handed to him. "This is what he used on us?"

Don shook his head. "No, not that one, but another one just like it. I found the broken pieces downstairs." He propped his pole against the counter and changed the subject. "What else did you find?"

"Well, I found our jackets in the bedroom." He nodded toward one of the chairs where he had tossed them. "But I didn't get a chance to see if any of our stuff was still in the pockets. Could you bring them over and I'll stuff them in the bags."

Don grabbed the jackets and did a quick search before handing them to his brother. He pulled out their wallets, watches, pocket knives and his pocket telescope.

"My cash is gone but my credit cards are still here." Don said before stuffing it back in his pocket.

"Same here. They probably planned to use them later." Charlie said as he stood up and handed one of the bags to his brother.

The long drawstrings on the bags worked perfectly. They were able to put their heads and arms through them and stretch it like a strap across their chests, the way a camera strap would lay, leaving their hands free.

Don knelt down to pick up Samantha but then hesitated. She was fully clothed and still wearing her jacket and sneakers, so it was with dual relieved sighs, that Don and Charlie realized that Rico had not had an opportunity to touch her yet; their untimely arrival had spared her and both brothers fully intended to see that it stayed that way.

"Help me take her jacket off Charlie. "

Together, they removed her jacket and Don stood up, holding her in his arms. He shifted her around to rest on his hip as she hung limply in his arms. Charlie placed the hat over her head and secured the strap under her chin.

Charlie paused long enough to unbutton his long sleeved shirt and tie it around his waist, then he tightened the strap on his hat and they headed outside.

"We'll have to take turns carrying her." Don said as they headed down the steps of the porch.

Don started forward but suddenly stopped. "Wait, I have an idea. Here take Samantha and start through the field." He passed the little girl to his brother before explaining further.

"Try not to mash any of the plants down, at least not until we get out of sight of the house. That way it'll be harder for them to figure out which direction we've gone in."

"What are you going to do?" Charlie asked as he adjusted the weight of the little girl.

"I'm going to leave them a false trial, then I'll catch up to you. " Don said as he found a small leafy branch lying among the plants that he could use to wipe away their tracks.

Charlie hesitated, and Don could see from his expression that he was afraid for him.

"Don't worry Charlie… you just get going, I'll catch up to you soon. "

"Make it fast, okay?" Charlie didn't wait for an answer but began to make his way through the field.

Don retraced their steps to the porch and left tracks that appeared to be following the road. It wasn't perfect but he hoped the wind would blow away what was left of their tracks. He could already see the wind blowing the dusty soil around in the open area. He entered the field at another point and angled over to catch up with his brother. He continued to erase their tracks until they were more than a mile into the onion field and then they concentrated on their speed.

The wind began to pick up but it did little to help cool them off as the brother's trudged their way between the rows of onion and bean plants.

As they traveled further into the field, walking became more difficult because the sprinklers had come on and the ground was muddy. The soil clung to their shoes and at times they really had to tug at them to get them out of the mud. It was a relief when they hit a dry section and were able to move faster through the field.

They were nearing the edge of the field and had just passed one of the large sprinklers when it suddenly came to life and hit them with a burst of water. The water was an unexpected blessing and they took full advantage of it. The brothers quickly pulled off the straw hats and let the water wash the dried blood from their hair and skin. All three of them were completely soaked by the time they moved away from the sprinkler but they knew all too well that it wouldn't be long before the sun literally "sucked all of the moisture" from their clothing and their bodies.

The word hot was going to take on a whole new meaning to the brothers before they made it to the foothills.


	7. Chapter 7

**Inner Peace**

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I truly appreciate your reviews. Without them I have no way of knowing if you are truly enjoying this story. Thank you.

Chapter 7:

The onion fields had gone on for miles and by the time the brothers crossed over into the Fava bean sections the smell of onions seemed to be everywhere. Charlie even confessed to Don that he thought his hair smelled like the odious vegetables.

Walking between the rows of the knee high onion plants had been difficult at times but that was nothing compared to how they had to weave their way in between the rows of Fava bean plants. The stalks were big and bushy, sometimes seven feet tall, with large seed pods that would grab at their clothing and hair. The bean plants did have one positive aspect however; they were large enough to completely hide them from view.

From the old house it had looked as if the farm fields had extended all the way to the foothills but after an hour and a half of walking they were faced with traversing the Mojave Desert.

Now they stood shoulder to shoulder on the edge of the field and stared in dismal silence at the expanse of the desert and the distant hills on the horizon. A strong south wind blew out of the desert, reminding them that the sun was not the only thing that they had to worry about. Behind them, the leaves of the bean plants rustled loudly as the wind continued on its journey through the fields.

Charlie knelt down and carefully laid the sleeping child on the sandy terrain. Gently, he pushed her hat back and brushed the damp hair back from her forehead. He raised his eyes to meet those of his brother; his brows knitting together worriedly.

"Shouldn't she be awake by now?"

Don squatted down next to him and checked the little girl's pulse and then tucked a wayward hair behind her ear. She showed no signs of waking or any reaction to his touch but just continued to sleep.

"Her pulse is strong Charlie and her breathing appears to be normal. We'll just have to wait until the drug wears off."

The agent straightened up, silently mourning the loss of his sunglasses as he stared at the distant foothills. They had been in his jacket pocket when Rico had tripped him on the stairs and had broken during his tumble to the cellar floor. At least his pocket telescope had survived the fall and he pulled it out to take a closer look at the distant mountain.

"What do you think? Twenty miles or so, give or take a few?"

Charlie stood up and arched his back, trying to stretch the kinks out of his muscles. With his hand held up to protect his eyes from the bright sunlight he thoughtfully studied the horizon.

"More like thirty. " He sighed, removing his hat. Sweat had plastered his curls to his face and he used his fingers to comb his hair back.

Don wasn't faring much better. He had pushed the sleeves of his polo shirt up as far as he could get them and was currently contemplating tearing them off. He glanced up at the hot sun and knew that even though it was on its way down, the heat would be intense for at least another two hours. They couldn't stop though; it was imperative to put as much distance as they could between themselves and the house before pursuit began.

Charlie rubbed his face with the end of his tee shirt and winced when the sand on his shirt scratched his face where the sun had already started to burn his skin. He let his hand drop, silently vowing not to try that again but the sweat running down the side of his face was driving him crazy and he had to do something to stop it. He untied the shirt that he had tied around his waist and ripped off one of the sleeves. Charlie tied the sleeve around his forehead with the hope that it would work like a sweatband then put his hat back on. Not only would the sleeve keep the sweat from dripping down on his face, it would also help protect his eyes from the glare of the sun. He ripped off the other sleeve and passed it to his brother and then stuffed the rest of his shirt in the bag that he was carrying.

"Thanks." Don said as he took the sleeve and tied it around his own forehead. "This feels good. You okay?"

A nod of his head and a shrug of his shoulders was the only response that Charlie offered as he continued to stare at the foothills.

"Are you okay Charlie?" Don asked, more insistently this time.

"Yeah." Charlie's head swiveled around and he met his brother's eyes. "Don, that ridge is a lot further away than we originally thought. It could take us days to reach those foothills, especially at the pace we are going."

"I know that Charlie. " Don shrugged his shoulders. "But it's not as if we have any other choices. "

The agent knelt and scooped up the little girl. "My turn to carry her Charlie." He straightened up and tried to make the sleeping child more comfortable.

Charlie nodded and they started forward, side by side, picking up their pace as they moved along.

The foothills became a beacon to them; on the other side of the ridge was Hesperia and safety and all they had to do was survive a trek across the desert and manage to stay hidden from the two men that were determined to kill them.

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Juan led the way along the curving highway toward the San Gabriel Mountains. He was determined to have the FBI looking for their agents as far away from their real location as possible. It had taken them longer than he thought it would though, and dusk was approaching. He glanced in the rear view mirror at the black SUV following closely behind him.

"_Loco Rico. " _He muttered heatedly to himself. He would have just washed his hands of this mess and let Rico face the feds himself but there was a chance that he would be investigated because of his connection with Rico, and that wasn't a risk that he was willing to take.

Juan had his own business concerns to worry about and he wasn't about to let Rico ruin it for him.

He glanced in the rear view mirror again. Yeah, Rico had done some stupid things before but this time he had kidnapped federal agents and would have to kill them. This time his cousin had gotten careless when he grabbed the girl and the fed's had somehow managed to track him down. Absently, he pulled a tooth pick from his pocket and stuck it between his teeth. He chewed on the stick as he came to a decision about his cousin. This was the last time that Rico was going to endanger his business. He would have to deal with him after the agents had been taken care of.

Leaving the SUV in the mountains would buy them some badly needed time while they disposed of the bodies and returned to Mexico until things died down on this side of the border.

Dusk had fallen as he left the main road, veering off to a side road that led to different trails within the park. A half mile in Juan found a deserted camping area and pulled over as he followed Rico's progress in his rear view mirror.

The light from the SUV's headlights bounced up and down as Rico drove over the uneven ground and pulled up behind Juan's truck. The older man quickly shut off the engine and grabbed the keys as he hurriedly locked the door and clamored out.

Juan put the passenger window down and yelled. "Hey Rico. Bring the cell phones with you. "

"Make up you're mind. " Rico muttered to himself as he unlocked the car and grabbed the two phones. He slammed the door shut again and hurried over to his cousin's truck.

"Man that is one sweet ride. I sure wish I could keep it." He grumbled angrily as he climbed into the cab beside of Juan and tossed the phones on the seat between them.

Juan glared at him. "Go ahead and keep it. The feds will be all over your ass in less than a day!"

Rico shifted his position, uncomfortable under his cousin's stare. "Why did we have to come all the way out here man?" He whined. "It's going to take us another three hours to get back"

Juan muttered a curse under his breath. "You are so stupid Rico. That's the whole idea! The feds will be tied up for days searching this whole mountain for those agents and by the time they realize that the car was a decoy, we'll be long gone."

One of the phones started to ring and both men glanced down. It rang four times and then went silent. Moments later the other phone started ringing too and the men shared a worried glance.

"They started doing that about forty-five minutes ago." Rico said uneasily. "Somebody's looking for them."

"That has to be one of the dumbest things that you have ever said." Juan hissed. "Of course somebody's looking for them!"

"Why did you want the phones? " Rico asked, ignoring his cousin's outburst. "I thought you said we had to get rid of them?"

"We are going to get rid of them, but not in the same place as the car. We'll toss them out somewhere else in the park."

Impatiently, Juan gunned the truck and pulled back out on the road, heading for the main highway. They would be back in Hesperia by twelve-thirty and that would be the perfect time to get rid of the bodies. There would be no chance of any witnesses this late at night and by the time the sun came up, they would be long gone.

The Mexican smiled at his cousin and slowed down; he didn't need a speeding ticket to place him in the area.

"Relax, Rico. Time is on our side now."

He switched on the radio and turned up the volume, slapping his hand against the wheel in time with the music; his mood was improving considerably as he drove back toward Hesperia.

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Amita sighed and glanced at her watch again. It was eight-fifty five and Charlie had yet to make an appearance at her apartment. Of course, his voice mail had said that he wouldn't be back until nine thirty but she was hopeful that he might get back earlier than he had anticipated.

Barefoot, she padded softly over to her couch and pulled her cell phone from her pocket. She folded her legs beneath her and hit the speed dial for Charlie's number as she settled comfortably on the cushions. The pretty professor tapped the phone impatiently with a fingernail as she listened to it ring….once….twice and then twice more before going to voice mail.

"Hey Charlie. I just wanted to let you know that the "massage "offer is still on the table. I'll be up late working on this project so….you know….come on over. Okay?" She paused and then added. "I also called your house so give me a call as soon as you get in. Okay? Bye now."

Disappointed, she closed her phone and as she set it next to her purse her eyes fell upon the research project lying on the table. Scowling in frustration and disappointment she snatched up the folder and a pencil then stretched out on the couch to work on it.

"Might as well get something accomplished." She grumbled, but every once in a while her eyes would drift toward the door with the hope that Charlie would soon come in.

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The foothills had proven to be more distant than they had anticipated and even though the brothers had somehow managed to maintain a steady stride, the hills were still miles away. Dusk was falling and the sky had taken on hues of dark blues, bright oranges and creamy yellows and on the horizon the sun had become a huge orange ball.

"It looks like it's sitting on the ground." Don observed as he searched desperately for a place for them to rest that could at least provide them with some minimal protection from searching eyes and the local wildlife.

Charlie glanced at the sun and just nodded his head in agreement, too tired to respond verbally. His brother was right though, out here where the land was flat, the sun appeared to be sitting right on the edge of the desert floor.

"Over there Charlie." Don said, pointing to a group of yucca plants and Joshua trees that had formed a fairly dense semicircle. "I think those plants are large enough to give us a little shelter. "

They made their way to the plants and sank wearily to their knees. Charlie pulled the blanket out and spread it over the sand so that Don could lay Samantha down and without even discussing it, they sat down on either side of her, both of them determined to keep her safe.

There had been a few signs of animal life during their walk but with the exception of an eagle flying overhead and a few vultures finishing off a jackrabbit, the desert had seemed lifeless and barren. But as the brothers tried to get comfortable the Mojave Desert seemed to come alive. Animals that had found refuge from the heat of the day now emerged from their burrows in the sand or crawled out from beneath the many rocks and bushes that were scattered across the darkening sands. A desert horned lizard just missed Don's hand when it popped its head up from the sand and shook itself loose from the sandy soil. Don proved that he was faster than the lizard when he jerked his hand away before the creature could confuse his fingers with the unsuspecting ants that it was rapidly devouring.

The desert sky suddenly came to life before them as a horde of bats wove their way through the darkening sky scooping up flying insects and they both jumped as the wings of a male nighthawk made a loud whooshing "hoooov" sound as it pulled out of a spectacular dive. An amazing show of aerial acrobatics followed the bird's antics when it was joined by a multitude of other nighthawk's.

All around them the quiet desert had come to life as crickets and other insects joined the melee of the birds and as if to remind them that it was still there, the wind picked up and howled softly across the sands.

Despite nature's impressive show, Charlie could no longer deny the constant pounding in his head and so he stretched out beside Samantha and gratefully closed his eyes just as the sun slipped below the horizon.

"You okay? " Don asked softly as he slowly followed his brother's example, his own head was still throbbing painfully to the rhythm of his heart.

"Yeah." he mumbled in a barely audible voice. "But I'd give anything for a couple of aspirin right now."

Don sighed. "I hear you bro. I could use a couple of them myself." He lay there for a few minutes before bringing himself back up to a sitting position. In the darkness he fumbled around in one of the bags for a bottle of water and took a sip.

"We can't stay here Charlie; we're still too close to the house." Don said as he shifted around to get more comfortable. "We can take turns napping and when the moon rises we'll start out again. You want some water?"

"No thanks." Charlie barely managed to whisper before he nodded off.

Forty minutes later, after Don caught himself nodding off for the second time, he reluctantly woke his brother up.

"Wake me up when the moon rises, okay?" Don managed to say before he surrendered to fatigue.

Charlie stretched his legs out and leaned back on his arms and listened to his brother's light snores. Surprisingly, his short nap had reduced his headache to a dull throb and he sighed with relief as he kept his turn at watch. He bent forward and removed his right sneaker then turned it upside down so he could shake the sand out of it. His sneakers were great for the hard-packed surfaces of the desert but as soon as he stepped on a sand dune, his shoes would fill up with sand. He put his shoe back on and repeated the process with his other one.

The surrounding darkness began to grow lighter and he gazed skyward as the moon began to rise up over the desert. At least all of their luck wasn't bad, it looked like there was going to be a full moon tonight which, he hoped, would provide them with more than enough light to continue their journey. Charlie let Don sleep a little while longer before he squeezed his shoulder to wake him.

"The moon's up Don. We need to get going again." He said softly.

Don sat up and stared bleary eyed at the bright moon and yawning widely he climbed to his feet. He raised his arms above his head to stretch his sore muscles and paused in mid stretch when a new sound echoed through the night air.

A distant full-throated and soulful howl filled the air and soon after, an answering howl was heard. More coyotes began to respond to the call and for a while they serenaded the inhabitants of the desert.

"Do you think they'll be a problem?" Charlie asked in a hushed voice.

"They sound pretty far away." Don said thoughtfully as he stared off in the distance. "I don't think they would go after us but they might go after Samantha." He bent down to pick up his bag and gripped the pole tightly in his other hand. "Better keep this handy…just in case.

Charlie draped the other bag over his shoulder and adjusted his pole so that it was sticking out at an angle that would be easy for him to grab if he needed to use it. He knelt down and picked up the little girl while Don grabbed the blanket and stuffed it back inside his bag.

With the moonlight illuminating their steps, Don and Charlie made their way across the shadowed desert.

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Robin stepped from the elevator and headed for the parking lot. The meeting had gone on a lot longer than she had anticipated but she had gained a lot of ground with it and the upcoming trial was looking more and more promising.

She tossed her briefcase into the backseat and checked her voice mail before pulling out of the parking lot and a weary smile crossed her face as Don's familiar voice filled her ears.

She glanced at her watch, ten o'clock, and according to his message he should have gotten back a half an hour ago. Robin hit her speed dial and grinned in anticipation of hearing his voice, but her grin faded to a frown when she only heard his voice mail.

"Hi Don. I just got out of my meeting and I'm heading home. I'll keep the covers warm for you so hurry over."

As she pulled out and headed for the highway, the thought of lying in Don's arms seemed to lift some of her fatigue and she found herself wishing that she was already there.

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"Chingao! " Juan cursed under his breath and slowed down as a long line of brake lights came into view. The double row of stopped cars on the interstate was unexpected and he scratched at his goatee nervously as he came to a complete stop. He checked his rear view mirror and cursed again at the realization that it was too late for him to turn around; double rows of headlights already had him sandwiched in the traffic jam.

"Damm the luck!" he said angrily and thumped the dashboard with the heel of his hand. They had been making really good time and were expecting to get back to the farm house an hour earlier than they had anticipated.

In the seat beside of him, his cousin was fidgeting nervously, turning first one way and then the other, while trying to discover the reason for the traffic jam.

"Is it a roadblock?" Rico asked anxiously.

"How the hell would I know?" His cousin retorted as he pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. "Here." he said gruffly, tossing the pack to his cousin. Juan lit the cigarette and took a long drag to calm his nerves and then opened the window and leaned his head out to see if he could see what was going on but the reason for the traffic jam remained a mystery.

"They could be looking for me." Rico muttered as he blew out a stream of smoke. "Maybe I should hide in the bushes."

Juan's head swiveled in his direction and the steely glint in his eyes made his cousin nervous. "I thought you said that no one saw you."

"No…no one did." Rico stammered, breaking out in a sweat as his thoughts turned to the man that had tried to stop him from taking the girl. He had been wearing a mask so the man couldn't have seen anything, right?

"Then why would they be looking for you?" Juan asked in a dangerously quiet voice.

"I just thought……" Rico swallowed hard and looked away. He normally didn't back down from anyone but no other man could intimidate him the way that his cousin could. Rico acted on impulse but Juan….Juan was cold and calculating in his actions.

"Too bad that you didn't think earlier today Rico." His cousin responded sarcastically and leaned out the window again. Suddenly he pulled his head back inside the cab.

"Chota!" he hissed.

Panic filled the older man's eyes and he lunged for the handle on the door, only to be pulled sharply back as Juan jerked his arm.

"Don't panic. We don't know what they want." Juan clenched his jaw tightly. "Understand?"

Rico nodded but suddenly turned his head when the light of a flashlight hit him squarely in the face.

"Evening boys.' The officer drawled politely as he panned the light over the two men in the cab.

Juan turned on the charm and smiled disarmingly at the state trooper. "Hello officer. Is something wrong?"

"You might want to turn that engine off son and save you're gas." He nodded his head sideways and added. "There's a four car pile up about a mile up the road with multiple injuries; it's going to take a while to clear it." He started to move away but the light from the flashlight fell on Rico's arm and he halted, focusing the light on the man's forearm.

"What is that on your arm…..some kind of bug?"

"Ah…no….just a tattoo….that's all." Rico answered nervously. "It's a spider." he added, trying to act more friendly.

"A spider huh?" The officer shrugged. "Nice job…looks real." He moved away with a nod of his head to speak with the occupants of the vehicle behind them.

The Mexicans sat quietly and waited until the officer was out of hearing range before they started to talk again.

Juan tossed his cigarette out of the window and leaned his head back against the seat to get more comfortable. "You might as well relax Rico. It's looks like we are going to be here for a while." He crossed his arms across his chest and closed his eyes.

Rico shifted impatiently beside him. "How can you relax? We should have killed them before we left." He turned suddenly and gripped his cousin's arm. "What if they get away or someone found them?"

Juan shook off his arm. "How could they get away? And even if they did, where would they go?" He laughed and shook his head. "No one is going out there tonight….they will still be there when we get back…..so get some sleep. We have a late night ahead of us."

He shifted in the seat and made himself more comfortable as the sound of sirens wailed through the night air with the arrival of more emergency vehicles.

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The extreme heat of the day had faded and now the desert was cooling down which made the walking a little easier. The brothers managed to walk for another two hours before exhaustion finally began to claim them.

"We can't go on Don." Charlie muttered breathlessly, after Don tripped over a piece of deadwood. "We have to stop. If one of us breaks a leg out here we'll never get Samantha safely home."

Don instinctively tightened his hold on the little girl as he stumbled and steadied himself with Charlie's help. He turned to face his brother and even though his face was shrouded in shadow there was still enough moonlight to let him see the worry and fatigue etched into his features. Charlie was right, he told himself, and although he hated to admit it, he knew they had to stop. Don reluctantly nodded his head in agreement and scanned the surrounding darkness for a place for them to camp for the night. He spied a rock formation on their right and pointed in that direction. Wordlessly, they trudged to the formation and were surprised to find that it was a small knoll covered by large boulders. They had stumbled upon the perfect campsite; they even found an inner area that was almost completely enclosed by the boulders, one that would hide them from view and protect them from the constant wind.

Don lowered the little girl to the ground and settled back on his heels. He glanced at his watch and pressed the button so it would light up; ten o'clock, "_Guess I won't be getting home by nine thirty." _he thought sarcastically. The agent shivered as the cooler air penetrated his weary mind and he realized how welcome the warmth of a fire would feel at that moment. Rational thought returned and he forced his tired and achy body to move. He used the pole as a lever to push himself up and slowly came to his feet.

Charlie cocked his head in a questioning pose but before he could ask Don offered an explanation.

"I'm going to gather some firewood." He nodded at the large boulder behind them. "With this big rock behind us and a fire right here," he said pointing to a spot a few feet in front of the boulder, " we'll have some protection from any animal that might wander in on us and I'm sure that no one could see the fire from here. Besides, I'm getting cold….aren't you?"

"Me too." Charlie mumbled wearily. "Just don't get lost…okay?"

Don patted his brother on the shoulder as he turned to leave. "Don't worry, I won't go far." His steps faltered and he glanced back. "Keep that pole handy in case something else wanders in before I do."

The younger man just sighed tiredly and lifted the pole in response as he watched Don leave; He laid the pole back on the ground next to him and then bowed his head so that he could massage the back of his neck. The dizziness that he had experienced earlier had finally dissipated but he still had a lingering headache from the assault, it wasn't as bad as it had been earlier but it was still there.

Charlie closed his eyes in relief as his tired muscles responded to his ministrations but he froze when his eyes fluttered open and the bright moonlight revealed a pair of frightened blue eyes staring back at him. Charlie's mouth dropped open in surprise but before he could say anything Samantha suddenly came to life.


	8. Chapter 8

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Thank you so much for taking the time to review this story.

Chapter 8:

Don was surprised to discover how far he had wandered away from their campsite in his search for firewood. He had only intended to go a few feet but there wasn't enough wood around their immediate vicinity so he had to go further. Now with his arms full of firewood he turned in a circle trying to get his bearings but despite the bright moon, the desert had turned into a shadowy maze.

He could see at least three large rock formations within his sight, each one in a different direction and a good distance apart but the big question was which one was the one where he had left his brother and the little girl?

Don took a deep breath and tried to remember the silhouette of the rock formation where they had decided to make camp. Under normal conditions this wouldn't be a problem for an agent with exceptional observation skills but his mental and physical abilities had been pushed to the limit and now he found himself functioning on a much lower level than he was accustomed too. Fatigue was playing havoc with his mind and he broke out in a sweat as he concentrated on their shapes.

A sudden gust of wind blew sand in his face and he turned around to protect his eyes. But as he turned he caught something else on the wind, a sound, and he cocked his head to the side to try and hear it better.

Silence….and then the wind blew again and with it came an unidentifiable high-pitched sound that had been captured by the breeze,

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A rapid series of high-pitched, piercing screams reverberated across the small knoll completely drowning out any other sounds that were being made by the Mojave's permanent inhabitants; even the wind had to bow down in defeat to the hysterical shrieks of a five-year old child.

The terrified little girl abruptly jumped to her feet and staggered backwards a few inches before coming to a complete standstill. She was disoriented, breathing rapidly and had stopped screaming for the moment, swaying slightly on her feet. This prompted Charlie to move forward in an effort to catch the child before she fell but his sudden movement only succeeded in frightening her more. Her eyes wide with fear, Samantha started screaming again as she scrambled backwards until her back was up against the large boulder. Still screaming hysterically, she slid down the side of the rock and pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms tightly around them. She lowered her head until her forehead rested on her knees, turning herself into a trembling little ball.

Charlie was in a near panic himself but he kept trying to get her attention in an effort to calm her down. He quickly closed the distance between them and sat down quietly in front of her and waited for her to look up.

"Samantha, I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help you." He spoke softly and although her screams were now muffled he still wasn't sure if she had even heard him.

The little girl suddenly became aware of his close proximity because she turned sideways and recoiled away from him, pressing her small, trembling body against the rock. She had finally stopped screaming but now she was sobbing with her hands covering her eyes.

Charlie couldn't see Samantha's face clearly; moon shadows combined with the little girls hair kept her face hidden in darkness.

"Wanna…go…home." She whispered between sobs. "Want …my …. Momm…mie… ….an .an….…Dad…dy. Pleeze……I'll…..be….good." She sniffed and wiped her nose on her sleeve. "I…I ...pwomize."

She looked so helpless and vulnerable huddled up against the rock that Charlie's heart melted and he had to resist an overwhelming urge to take her in his arms and comfort her. But he hesitated because he was afraid that touching her might frighten Samantha even more, so he sat back on his heels and lifted his hands up in front of the child in a placating manner to try and calm the little girl's fears.

"I know you want to go home, Samantha." Charlie said in a quiet and soothing voice. "And I want to help you get home. Please don't be afraid……I'm not going to hurt you." He inched forward slowly until he was within arms reach of the little girl and tilted his head to the side in an effort to make eye contact with her.

She lowered her hands a little and looked up at him through her fingers and the wet strands of her hair.

"Mom….Mommie….said….not…talk…to .to…stwangews." She sobbed and lowered her head, letting her hair fall forward and once again hiding her face from view.

Charlie slowly stretched his hand out toward her and gently cupped her chin, raising her head slightly as he spoke to her. She didn't try to pull away from him and sat quietly while he pushed her hair back behind her ears.

"Your Mommy is right Samantha...... you shouldn't talk to strangers." He spoke softly in an attempt to put her at ease. "But your Mommy and Daddy can't be with you right now and you need someone that can help you get back to them. I know they are very worried about you and I'm sure that they would want you to let me help you get back home."

Her lower lip trembled and she sniffled a few times as she sat quietly and watched him.

"Sometimes when bad things happen we can make new friends; friends that can help us get through the bad times." He wiped away a few tears with his fingers and continued to talk quietly to her. "This is one of those times Samantha…..please let me help you. "

She had stopped crying but gazed at him warily. Even in the moonlight he could see the anguish in her eyes; eyes that alternately reflected fear and a desperate need to trust him and he shuddered to think of how the kidnapper must have mistreated the little girl for her to experience those kinds of emotions.

"I know you're scared honey and you have every right to be." His lips curved upward in a soft smile as she appeared to calm down. "My name is Charlie and I would like to be your friend." He held his hand out to her, palm up. "It's nice to meet you Samantha."

"Youw …not…mean….like....like…him. " She hesitated and then slowly placed her small hand in his and looked up at him with complete trust in her eyes.

The faith in those little blue eyes took his breath away and in that instant he knew that he would gladly give up his own life if it meant getting her to safety; he silently vowed that he was never going to let those two men touch her again.

"No. I'm not like him. My brother and I took you away from that man and we are trying to get you back home to your Mommy and Daddy." He smiled again. "Now can we be friends?" He paused to give her some time to think about it. "Okay?"

"Okay, fwiends" The little girl said quietly, returning his smile and moving a little closer to him.

"Are you thirsty?" Charlie asked as he pulled the bag over. He rummaged through the bag until he found one of the water bottles and opened it before handing it to her.

"Just take a small sip at first. Okay?"

Samantha reached for the water but her small hands were trembling so badly that Charlie held onto the bottle as she took a drink.

"Is that better?" he asked as he screwed the lid back on the bottle and set it aside.

Samantha nodded her head and moved even closer to him until she was almost sitting in his lap, seeking comfort and safety. Charlie picked her up and she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and laid her head upon his shoulder. He held her close, rubbing small circles on her back to calm her down and whispered softly in her ear that everything was going to be alright. He could feel her small body trembling against him and held her until the tremors subsided and she was more at ease. After a while she sat back and looked up at him, shivering now from the cool night air.

"Are you cold?"

She nodded her head up and down.

"Stand up a minute and I'll get your jacket for you." Charlie said as he once again rummaged through the bag until he found her jacket "My brother went to get us some firewood and when he gets back we'll have a nice fire to help keep us warm."

"Chawlie?" She asked tentatively

"Yes, Sammy?" He responded while buttoning up her jacket and when she didn't answer him right away he paused and looked up.

"Gotta…go…potty." she mumbled and gazed at him expectantly.

Charlie's eyebrows shot up and disappeared beneath his curls.

"What? Oh…ah…ok…sure." He stammered out as he frantically looked around the moonlit campsite. "_Where was Don when he needed him?" _He glanced back at the little girl who was now urgently shifting from foot to foot.

Realizing that he didn't have much time he stood up and took her by the hand. They crossed to the other side of the campsite near another rock and Charlie told her to stand beside of him while he quickly knelt down and dug a hole in the sand.

"You can potty in this hole. Okay?"

Charlie held his breath as she nodded her head but then his expression turned to puzzlement when she didn't make any attempt to pull her pants down, but just stood there anxiously shifting her feet.

He gulped and asked. "Ah…do you need any help?"

Charlie's experience with a child this small was practically non-existent, but he thought that a child of her age would be going to the bathroom by themselves.

"No." She said quietly and wide-eyed glanced all around her as she nervously played with the buttons on her jacket.

Charlie was puzzled by her answer. "Then…." he started to say but suddenly he understood. "Oh…right. You need a little privacy don't you? "

He glanced around the clearing and got an idea but mindful of the coyotes, he didn't want to leave her alone, even he was only a few feet away.

"I have to get something but I want you to come with me. Is it okay if I carry you?"

"Okay."

He quickly picked her up and raced to the other side of the campsite and after grabbing the bag with one hand he hurried back over to the hole. Charlie set the little girl back down and rooted through the bag until he found the blanket. He stood up and opened it before raising it up in front of her like a curtain.

"How about this? I'll hold it up in front of you….like this." He said raising it up high enough to cover his face. "I promise I won't peek. Okay?"

"Okay." Sammy's little voice answered from behind the curtain.

Charlie's face broke into a relieved grin as he held the blanket up to give her some privacy but he kept it low enough so that he could see the top of her head. His grin faded quickly however, when he heard something approaching and his head swiveled around to face the possible threat.

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Don had decided to follow the strange sound and carefully made his way toward one of the rock formations but when he got there only the sound of the wind greeted him, as if it had tricked him and was now enjoying the laugh at his expense.

He ignored the wind and followed the trail until he saw a large boulder loom up in front of him. That looked familiar and he anxiously rounded the boulder expecting to see Charlie and Samantha sitting in front of it.

"I found a lot of wood. Char…" He stopped in mid-sentence when the moon light revealed only sand and rocks.

Frowning, he stopped in front of the rock and still holding the pile of wood in his arms, he turned in a circle. He had been so sure that this was where he had left Charlie and the little girl but he must have been mistaken and just as he decided to check out one of the other rock formations, Don spotted his brother on the other side of the camp.

"What are you dong?"

Before Charlie could answer him a little girl's voice called out from behind the blanket.

"All done Chawlie."

Don's lips curved upward in a bemused smile when he realized why his brother was standing in the middle of nowhere holding up a blanket. He bent over and dropped the wood to the ground, sharing a wide grin with his brother as he stood up.

"Tissue, pleeze."

Charlie froze and his grin faded. "_Tissue? Toilet tissue? Where in the hell am I supposed to find toilet paper out here?" _he thought, suddenly panic-stricken. His eyes widened as he turned to his big brother for support.

Don's grin had faded at the little girl's request and he frantically began to search through his pockets for anything that even slightly resembled a tissue. Don could face an armed man without a second thought but as he held up his empty hands for his brother to see, he couldn't help but flinch when the request was repeated.

"Chawlie. Tissue, pleeze." The little girl asked again in a voice tinged with a little impatience.

The mathematician gulped, feeling helpless and not quite sure what he should do; his multiple PhD's had failed him. Even his numbers couldn't manufacture toilet paper out of thin air. Suddenly his eyes lit up as a solution came to mind.

"Don, come hold this a minute." he demanded urgently.

His brother didn't move but just stared at him suspiciously. "Why?"

"Just get over here." Charlie hissed. "And hurry!"

Wearing a puzzled frown, Don hurriedly crossed the short space separating them.

"Hold the blanket a minute." Charlie said as he shoved it into his brother's hands.

Don reluctantly took the blanket from him and watched as Charlie dropped to his knees and rooted through the bag. The mathematician pulled his torn shirt out of the bag and ripped a small square of cloth from the tail of it.

"Brilliant." Don teased. "I guess you really are a genius, huh?"

Charlie looked up and rolled his eyes at him then moved near the edge of the blanket and held out the cloth so that the little girl could see it.

"We don't have any tissue paper Sammy, but you can use this."

A small hand appeared around the blanket and took the piece of cloth.

Grinning, Charlie stood up and took the blanket back from his brother and moments later he lowered it when the little girl announced that she was finished.

Samantha caught sight of Don as soon as Charlie lowered the blanket and ran behind him, wrapping her arms tightly around his legs.

Dismayed at the little girl's fear of him, the agent immediately tried to console her. "I won't hurt you. I just want to help you." Don said softly.

The mathematician bent over and picked Sammy up in his arms. She immediately flung her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder. Charlie rested his head lightly against hers and spoke softly.

"Hey, it's okay. This is my big brother Donnie and he just wants to help you get home too." He hugged her closely and stroked her hair gently. "Let me introduce you to him and he can be your friend too. Okay?"

She raised her head and looked up at him and answered. "Okay." she whispered and turned her head to look at Don.

Don walked slowly over and held out his hand. "Hello Samantha. My name is Don. Will you be my friend?"

"Okay." She said shyly as she shook his hand and then her tone changed to a happier one and she said proudly. "Chawlie calls me Sammy."

Charlie blinked. He hadn't realized that he had shortened her name. It had just felt natural for him to call her that.

Don grinned. "Can I call you Sammy too?" She nodded her head eagerly and then corrected him. "Chawlie called you Donnie."

Don's grin broadened. "That's right, he did, didn't he? I have an idea. Why don't you call me Uncle Donnie and my brother can be Uncle Charlie and we'll both call you Sammy. Is it a deal?"

"Deal." she replied happily.

"Good. Now let's get a fire going so we can warm up." He headed for the pile of sticks, followed by Charlie and Sammy. The fire flared up quickly and spread its welcome warmth over them but Don kept it small enough so that its glow couldn't be seen over the rocks.

Charlie set the little girl down and spread out the blanket between the fire and the rock and all three sat down.

"I bet that you are hungry. Right?" Charlie asked, opening one of the bags to take out the jar of peanut butter and a bottle of water. The little girl eagerly accepted the water bottle from him and immediately took a drink. At the same time, Don opened the other bag and passed the loaf of bread to his brother.

Don studied the little girls face in the firelight. Dirt and sand covered her small face and there were streaks running from her eyes to her chin, marking the passage of her tears.

"I know that there is a little girl under there somewhere." Don teased Samantha. "Let's see if we can find something to get that dirt off of your face."

It was his turn to rummage through the bag but the only spare cloth that he found was the remnants of Charlie's shirt. He held it up ruefully and caught his brother's eye.

"Ah, maybe I better save this for …ah…other issues."

Charlie arched an eyebrow. "You think?" He shook his head and laughed softly as he opened the peanut butter jar and picked up one of the plasticc knives.

"I've got an idea. " Don said shrugging out of his jacket. He pulled his pocket knife out and cut the seam holding one of the sleeves to the shirt that he was wearing and with a mighty tug he pulled the sleeve free and then repeated the process on his other sleeve. Smiling triumphantly, he put his jacket back on and poured a little water onto one of the sleeves.

"Come here sweetheart. Let's see if we can get some of that dirt off of your face." Don gently wiped her face clean and paused at the bemused expression on his brother's face.

"What?" he asked defensively and then winked at the little girl. "Besides, I can't let you be the only one who would give up his clothes for a lady in distress. Right sweetheart?"

Samantha giggled and relaxed even more with the friendly banter between the brothers.

Charlie laughed out loud at Don's comment and then began to spread some peanut butter over a slice of bread. The first slice was for Samantha and when he finished he held it out to her. "Do you want it flat or folded in half?"

"Folded pleeze." She eagerly accepted it and took a bite just as Don's stomach growled softly.

"I didn't realize how hungry I was." He winked at Samantha again. "I think we need a faster cook."

"Well, you can play cook at our next meal." Charlie said as he handed him a slice of peanut butter bread. Don just grinned as he took a bite while Charlie hurriedly made another one for himself.

It wasn't much of a dinner but at that moment in time, the three of them would swear that it was the best meal that they had ever eaten. Charlie gave Samantha another slice of peanut butter bread before closing up the bag. He and Don silently tallied up their provisions and declined another slice for themselves. Eighteen slices in a small loaf of bread had just been reduced to fourteen and they weren't really sure how long it would take them to reach Hesperia. Don brought out the bag of chocolate chip cookies and Samantha squealed with delight as she added two cookies to her meal. It was a large bag so Don and Charlie joined in and had a couple of them too.

"This is like a picnic, only at night." The little girl giggled as she took another drink of water.

Afterwards, Don and Charlie stretched out on their backs with Sammy between them and pointed up at the stars, showing her the different constellations and watching for shooting stars until she became drowsy and was ready to sleep. She made one more trip to the potty and then Charlie filled the hole with sand.

Don shook the sand out of the blanket and then folded it in half, forming a make shift sleeping bag. Charlie lay down beside of Sammy and pulled the blanket around them and made certain that she was completely tucked in. He lay on his side and the little girl scooted backwards until her back was planted firmly against his chest. He put his arm over her and cuddled her protectively and it wasn't long until both of them had fallen asleep.

Don let his head fall back against the rock and momentarily closed his eyes. It was late now and most of the deserts inhabitants had retired for the night and only a few sounds were left to break the silence;the quiet crackling of the fire, an occasional coyote howling in the distance and the incessant blowing of the wind.

It was his turn to stand watch and although he was pretty sure that the Mexicans wouldn't start looking for them until morning, he wasn't about to take any chances. He understood all too clearly how things could change in an instant. Wasn't today a perfect example of that? A routine visit to an old crime scene had turned dramatically into a flight for survival.

His eyes drifted downward and came to rest on his brother and the little girl. The flickering firelight created soft shadows on their faces and Sammy's innocence tore at his heart. Thanks to his brother she slept peacefully tonight, protected in his arms.

Don stretched out his hand and let it rest lightly on Charlie's shoulder. He was so proud of his brother at that moment. If Charlie hadn't insisted that he needed to see the old murder site, then Samantha would have been lost, because none of their evidence for the recent murders had connected in anyway with the murder in Hesperia and their investigation would never have brought them this far south.

He squeezed his brother's shoulder gently and whispered in a voice full of pride and love. "You did good Buddy, you did good."

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Alan yawned widely as he inserted the key into the lock of the Craftsman. The night had gotten away from him it seemed and now instead of getting home at nine o'clock like he had planned, he was getting home at eleven thirty instead.

He shuffled into the house, locking the door behind him before heading directly up the stairs to his room. He glanced at the blinking light on the phone as he passed it by but assumed that it was the message that he had left for Charlie telling him that he would be home late. Obviously, that had been a waste of time because it appeared that Charlie was staying out late too or that he was staying over at Amita's apartment tonight. That thought brought one of his greatest desires to mind; grandchildren.

It didn't take him long to change into his pajamas and soon he was crawling between the sheets on his bed. He switched off the light and snuggled deep within the covers and his last thought was that maybe soon he would have those grandchildren that he so desperately wanted.

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"It's about time. " Juan muttered irritably as the old house finally came into view.

A loud snore from the other occupant of the truck prompted him to give his cousin a rough shove as he pulled alongside of the front porch.

"Wake up Rico!" Juan yelled as he clamored out of the truck, letting the door slam shut behind him.

Bleary eyed the older man slowly opened the door and practically slid out of the truck. He leaned back against the side of it as he yawned widely.

"What time is it?"

"Two o'clock." Juan grumbled angrily. "I can't believe that it took them so long to clean up that mess." The sound of grating metal resounded around the clearing as the younger man pulled down the door to the bed of his truck.

"We'll take them out to the desert and bury them, and then tomorrow we head for Mexico. You got that Rico?"

"You already told me twice." He responded irritably. "How many times are you going to tell me?"

Juan tossed him a flashlight and headed into the house. "As many times as I want!" he yelled over his shoulder.

Rico grumbled and followed him into the house but he hesitated at the top of the stairs when he heard his cousin screaming curses at the top of his lungs.

TBC

A/N: In trying to lend some credibility to Samantha's speech I have replaced the "rs" in her words with "w's" since most five year olds have a problem pronouncing the letter "r."


	9. Chapter 9

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: As always, I truly appreciate your reviews.

Chapter 9:

Dawn approached and with its arrival came a symphony of songbird melodies and once again Charlie was amazed as the desert came to life. Many of the towhees, wrens and sparrows were spurred on by the relative cool morning and darted in and out of the bushes foraging for food.

Charlie watched them momentarily and then his eyes drifted upward toward the heavens. The sky was beginning to grow lighter now and clouds began to spread across the sky in a variety of colors. Clouds of blacks and grays gradually changed into shades of purples, oranges and yellows reminding him that the sun would soon be making its appearance.

It was time for them to start walking again; if they left now they had a chance to put a few more miles behind them before the intense heat of the sun slowed them down.

Charlie sighed and leaned his head back against the rock. He'd give anything for a hot cup of coffee right now and the desire was so great that he could almost taste it. "_That is so not going to happen_. " he told himself irritably and rose slowly to his feet. With an audible groan he arched his back, stretching his stiff and sore muscles before gathering up his bag and settling it over his shoulders. Minute grains of sand had somehow managed to pass through his shirt and settle on his skin causing Charlie to wince as the rope settled into place across his torso. His skin had already started to chafe where the rope rubbed the sand against his chest.

He bent over his brother and gently shook his shoulder.

"Don." He whispered softly, trying not to wake the sleeping child that was curled up against his brother's side.

The agent rolled over and his eyes fluttered open. He looked up at Charlie and yawned widely before gently pulling himself away from Sammy and sitting up.

"I could use another twelve hours of sleep." Don grumbled.

Charlie sympathized with him and patted his shoulder. "That makes two of us, but that just isn't going to happen. We need to get moving before it gets too hot."

Don scrubbed a hand through his hair. "Yeah, yeah I know." He looked down at the little girl. "I think we should let Sammy sleep and when she wakes up we can stop and have some breakfast."

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Charlie agreed, kneeling down and wrapping the little girl up in the blanket before scooping her up in his arms.

Don gathered up the rest of their things and they started out again. As they headed out across the desert floor they discovered more evidence of the night life in the desert. There were paw prints of coyotes and skunks near their campsite and a little further on they found the trail of a sidewinder as it made its way across the sandy terrain.

Although neither one voiced it, they were both relieved that last night's fire had kept this part of the Mojave at a distance.

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Alan rolled over and turned off the alarm without opening his eyes. He was trying to hold onto the dream a little longer…just a little longer. Margaret came to him sometimes in his dreams and they would talk the way they used too. She was here now, trying to tell him something but the alarm had gone off and had almost severed their connection. Desperately he kept his eyes closed in an effort to will the dream to stay so that he could hear the rest of her message. _"You must have faith in our sons Alan. Do not give up, they will…….." He squeezed his eyes tighter in an effort to bring her back. "They will what?" he called out anxiously as she faded from his sight. "Wait…come back….I couldn't hear what you said. "_

But his efforts were in vain…the dream was lost. The alarm sounded again and irritably, Alan stretched out his hand and shut it off. Bleary-eyed, he peered at the time digitally displayed on the clock and sat up slowly. Out of the corner of his eyes he could the morning light beginning to seep in around the edges of the closed curtains and he tossed the covers aside and sat on the edge of the bed as the room continued to brighten around him. Sighing, he climbed out of bed, grabbed his robe and put it on and then slid his feet into his slippers. With the dream still vividly playing through his mind, he shuffled slowly toward the door and made his way down the hallway to the bathroom.

A half an hour later, after a shower and shave, he emerged from the room feeling ready to face the day. He quickly dressed and headed for the staircase with the thought of a hot cup of coffee spurring him on. Alan glanced sideways at Charlie's closed door and as he passed by he wondered what time his son had come home. He knew that Charlie had an early class today and would probably be getting up soon so he hurried downstairs to get the coffee brewing. That was one thing all of the Eppes men had in common; they all needed that hot cup of caffeine in the morning to help them get the day started.

Alan pushed through the swinging door of the kitchen and in a very short time he emerged with a satisfied grin on his face. He paused in his steps to take a drink of the warm liquid and then resumed his course to retrieve the morning paper. But before he made it to the front door, a red, blinking light caught his attention and he veered over to the answering machine. His eyebrows rose slightly when he noted the number of messages that had been recorded on the machine and feeling a little guilty because he hadn't checked the messages the night before, he settled into the chair next to the phone and took another sip of coffee as he hit the message playback button.

The first message was recorded at four-forty five p.m. and it was Charlie saying that he would be home around nine-thirty. The eight-thirty message was his own, informing Charlie that he was going to be late. He chuckled at Amita's nine -forty message promising Charlie a massage that he would never forget, but his mood became more somber as the next message played through. It was Amita again, calling at ten-thirty, but it was the worried tone in her voice that he found unsettling.

Alan anxiously came to his feet and strode purposely toward the stairs. "_There is nothing wrong. " __he told himself, "This is nonsense, Charlie is asleep upstairs. " _

He moved up the staircase faster than he had in years and flung open his son's door with such force that it slammed against the wall. But an empty room and a neatly made bed greeted him, not the dark tousled curls that he had hoped to see lying across the pillows. Charlie hadn't come home last night but if it wasn't at Amita's apartment, then maybe he was at Don's. He backed out of the room and made it downstairs just as Robin's message to Don began to play and he hurried over to check the time of her call; ten forty-five p.m.

Alan was starting to get an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach and before Amita's eleven p.m. message had finished playing his cell phone was already in his hand.

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Colby checked his watch and with a shake of his head he crossed over to the conference room in search of his partner. After checking through several cubicles he finally found him standing in front of a map of the Los Angeles area.

"David, did Don say he was going to be late this morning?"

"No. He didn't say anything to me." Sinclair glanced around the cubicles. "Are you sure he's not here yet?"

"Yeah. Nobody's seen him." Colby's brow furrowed, "He's not answering his cell phone either, and it keeps going to voice-mail."

Don's desk phone rang and David hurried over to answer it. "David Sinclair. Oh, hello Robin. No he hasn't come in yet." He frowned and caught Colby's eye. "Really? Last night huh? If you hear from him let me know. I'll check around here. Right. Bye."

He hung up the phone and pulled out his cell phone. "Robin says that she received two voice-mails from Don yesterday, one at four fifty-five and another one at six o'clock. Both of them had the same message, that he and Charlie were going to check something out and that he would be back by nine-thirty, but he didn't show up and she didn't hear anymore from him." He punched in a few numbers. "Robin said she fell asleep and that she tried to contact him again this morning but she still hasn't been able to locate him and she's really starting to get worried."

David put the phone to his ear and listened and a few seconds later ended the phone call.

"Charlie's phone goes to voice-mail too. I'm starting to get a bad feeling about this."

"Hey guys." Liz greeted them as she walked into the room. "I just got off the phone with forensics. They found three sets of prints in the stolen truck." She glanced down at her notes. "Two have been identified already, the little girls and the owners. The third hasn't been matched yet but it probably belongs to our kidnapper."

Liz stopped talking when she noticed their expressions. "What did I miss?"

"Yeah, did we miss something? You guys don't look so good." Nikki added as she came up behind Liz.

Colby shrugged. "It may not be anything yet. Have either of you talked to Don or Charlie this morning?"

"What?" Nikki asked looking around. "The boss isn't here?"

"I haven't seen either of them since yesterday." Liz replied slowly. "Why?"

David ran his hand over his head. "Nobody's seen or talked to them since yesterday and they haven't returned any of their voice-mails."

"Charlie's car is parked in the lot. Are you sure he's not here?"

"Liz, you saw his car?" Colby asked and then turned quickly to face his partner. "I didn't see it when we pulled in this morning, did you?"

David shook his head. "No, but there was a van making deliveries when we arrived, it could have blocked our view of his car."

"Did anyone call Alan?" Liz asked as she pulled out her phone.

"Call Alan about what?"

A worried voice asked from behind them. They all turned in surprise to find the elder Eppes standing at the entrance to the room. "Did something happen to Don or Charlie? I've been trying to reach both of them all morning and Charlie didn't come home last night." He paused and glanced from agent to agent as he waited for an answer.

"Ah, Alan." David said quietly. "We can't find Don either. Have you already been to CalSci?"

"I just left there. Charlie didn't show up for his first class, Amita had to take it for him." Alan put his hands on his hips. "Charlie would never miss a class."

"Alan, do you know if Amita or Larry heard anything from Charlie?"

"Amita got the same message that I did last night. Charlie said that he and Don were going somewhere to check something out and that they would be back by nine thirty last night."

"Sounds like the same message that Don left for Robin." David said as he sat down on the edge of the table. He rubbed at his forehead and mumbled. "I don't like where this is going."

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The morning light made its way over the fields and the deserted dirt road that ran alongside of it, finally illuminating the white pick up truck that was parked across from the entrance to the farm.

Juan and Rico had spent the remainder of the night guarding the only access to the main road to make certain that their captives never made it out of the fields.

"Finally!" Juan hissed as he climbed out of his truck.

Rico followed but kept at a safe distance and winced when he scratched his jaw. He'd had an unfortunate run-in with Juan's fist last night after the discovery of the agents escape and he had no intention of letting it happen again. He still had the gun that he had taken from the agent but he really didn't want to use it on his cousin because he needed Juan's help to get out of this mess.

Juan crossed to the field on the right side of the road and motioned for Rico to take the field on the left side.

"Walk along the edge and see if you can spot any tracks. I don't believe that they could have made it this far but I want to be sure."

Rico watched as Juan slowly weaved his way between the Fava bean plants as he checked the ground for footprints. After a moment's hesitation he turned around and began his own search among the plants on his side of the fields.

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Samantha had transformed from the frightened child of the night before and had become very comfortable with her two new uncles, appearing to trust them implicitly.

Despite being jostled around she had managed to sleep for another hour and a half. Don suspected that the reason that she had slept so long was due to the chloroform that was still in her system but at least she didn't appear to have suffered from any other affects of the drug.

"You really like peanut butter huh?" Charlie asked as Sammy ate her bread. The little girl just nodded her head and kept on chewing. He glanced over at his brother and noticed him rubbing his temples.

"Headache?"

"Yeah." Don shrugged. "I sure could use a cup of coffee right now."

Charlie snorted. "You're having a caffeine withdrawal headache…me too." he sighed wistfully. "Dad makes a real good cup of coffee man and I sure wish I had one right now."

Don took his last bite and chased it down with a gulp of water. "He does make a good cup of java. Has he shown you how he brews it yet?"

Charlie finished his bread and shrugged. "He tried once but somehow mine just didn't taste the same." He took a drink and grinned. "I think he's holding something back on me so that my brew won't be as good as his."

Don snickered. "Yeah, mine never comes out the same either."

Charlie's voice took on a more serious tone. "Do you think that anyone is looking for us yet? "

The agent glanced at his watch and shook his head. "I doubt it unless Dad raised the alarm last night." Suddenly he looked up with a hopeful gleam in his eyes. "Or maybe Amita?"

This time his brother shook his head. "No. She would have just thought that I got caught up in the case. How about Robin?"

"Same with her." Don replied and looked down when he felt a tug on his arm.

"Can we go home now?" She asked, looking first at Don and then turning to Charlie. "I wanna see Mommie."

Don placed an arm around her small shoulders. "We are trying to get you there sweetheart, but first we have to walk to those mountains." He said pointing at the still distant foothills.

Her eyes followed his finger and then she said. "We could dwive. Mommie's got a car."

Don and Charlie shared a sympathetic look over her head and then the young professor patted her softly on the knee. "We'll get a car on the other side of the hills. Okay?"

She looked up at him with sad blue eyes and answered quietly. "Okay."

They were silent and then the little girl spoke up again. "I'm still hungwy."

Don glanced over at Charlie before answering. The young man did a quick tally of their bread and said softly. "We only have eleven slices left."

"How about a cookie for all of us and then we need to start walking again." Don said, hoping that she would be satisfied with his suggestion. "Okay?"

Her eyes brightened up as he pulled the cookie bag out and passed one to each of them.

"Hey you know what?" Charlie said around a mouthful of cookie. "The caffeine in the chocolate chips should help ease our headaches."

"I don't know." Don said miserably. "I think it would take a lot of chocolate chips to deal with my headache."

"Woe is Don." Charlie chuckled and began to pack up their provisions.

They quickly cleaned up the area, eager to get going again before the temperature became unbearable. It was only eight o'clock in the morning and the wind was already blowing warm air around them; the desert floor was already beginning to heat up.

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David waited impatiently for the elevator doors to open and glanced at his watch for the third time. It was ten thirty and precious time was being lost as far as he was concerned but the ADIC had insisted on following protocol before declaring that Don and Charlie were really missing and launching an investigation into their disappearance.

"Finally!" He muttered as he stormed out and headed for the conference room. He pushed the glass door open and barely missed hitting Colby who was standing nearby.

Liz and Nikki looked up and hurried over to stand near Colby while David paced irritably around the room.

"What did he say?" Colby asked.

"Assistant Director Wright has put Miller in charge of Don and Charlie's disappearance." He raised a hand to forestall their objections. "Believe me, I tried every argument in the book but he says that he wants us to continue working on the Wilkes kidnapping."

"What happens if it turns out that the cases are linked together?

David was distracted by the ADIC and didn't answer right away; Wright had walked by their glass enclosed conference room to the one next to them. All eyes turned toward that room and they watched in silence as the director entered and began to brief the other team.

With his eyes still on the other room David answered Colby's question. "He says that if Miller turns up any evidence proving that the cases are connected then he will turn everything over to us and it will become our case." David sighed "He's going to keep us in the loop though, so at least we'll be updated on what they discover."

"That sucks man." Colby said disgustedly and sat down on the edge of the table.

Liz dropped dejectedly into a chair and stared at the team in the next room.

"So now what? " Nikki huffed, crossing her arms.

"Now we try and focus on this case." David said as he pulled out a chair. "We still have a little girl to find and time is running out for her. Do we have any new information?"

"Mexico sent the info that we requested and Stendhauser ran it against our data base. Nothing popped up at first and then she applied Charlie's program to it and we got a hit. " Colby tapped a button and a map of Mexico appeared on the plasma screen. Four red xs's marked villages where there had been similar assaults against little girls.

"The last attack occurred nine months ago in Tecate and the police were closing in on a drifter when he vanished. "

"And two months later little Janet Martin turns up dead." Liz mused out loud.

"So our drifter crossed the border." Nikki tossed out as she paced slowly around the room.

"I don't suppose they sent us a name or photograph of the drifter?" David asked.

Colby tapped a few buttons on the computer. "Nope. No picture or name, but they did send us this sketch of a man that a teacher saw hanging around the schoolyard. She called the police but by the time they arrived the stranger had already disappeared. "

A pencil drawing of a man appeared on the screen. Shoulder length, straight black hair framed the thin face of a man who appeared to be in his early forties; a pair of narrow set eyes and a thick moustache completed the drawing.

"The facial features would suggest that he is definitely of Hispanic origin." Liz noted as she studied the sketch.

"Do you want to put the sketch on the air…..see if anyone can recognize him?" Nikki asked.

David shook his head slowly. "No, I don't think so. I don't want to spook him and besides, until we find some distinguishing characteristics this sketch could match half of the Hispanic population in Los Angeles."

"So now what?" Colby asked, swiveling around in his chair to meet his partner's eye.

"Now." David said as he turned back to his laptop. "We keep looking."

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Rico clicked on his walkie-talkie. "It's been three hours man and I haven't seen one set of footprints."

"That's a good sign Rico." Juan's dry voice crackled over the radio. "It means that they didn't make it out of the fields yet."

"What are we going to do man? Search all of the freaking fields? I'm getting hungry; the damn bastards stole my food when they left." he whined.

"Alright, meet me at the truck. I've got some water and sandwiches in the cooler."

Juan was already finishing off a bottle of water when Rico finally made his way back. Sweaty and irritable, he caught the bottle that Juan tossed at him and drank it before joining his cousin beside the truck.

"Grab a sandwich and I'll get the air conditioner going in the cab."

A few minutes later they were both eagerly devouring their meal and downing another bottle of water.

Rico wiped his mouth with his hand then turned to face his cousin.

"Why don't we just set fire to the damn field and burn them out? It would be a lot quicker than looking for footprints. "

Juan rolled his eyes at him and starting shoving the paper from their sandwiches into a paper bag. "Stupido."

Anger flared in the other man's eyes. "I'm getting tired of your insults Juan."

"Then stop suggesting stupid things." his cousin retorted.

"What is so stupid about that idea?" Rico asked defensively.

"Oh, I don't know, let me think." Juan said sarcastically as he put a finger to his temple and pretended to think. "Maybe it would be a bad idea because every….freaking….fire department in the county would be over here trying to put it out!" His last word came out as a shout and the older man flinched at the intensity of his stare.

"I…ah…didn't think about that." he mumbled in a barely audible voice.

"Yeah, well, it was your not thinking that got us into this mess in the first place." Juan said as he put the truck into gear and headed up the dirt road toward the farmhouse.

"Now what? "

"Now that we know for sure that the fed's are still here, we'll go back to the farmhouse and follow their trail and this time Rico....this time when we find them…we will kill .them."

Juan spoke with confidence; there could be no other outcome. The agent had seen his face so he had to die…. they all did.

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It was approaching eleven a.m. and the temperature had already hit the one hundred degree mark. The sun blazed mercilessly down upon the two men and the child as they slowly made their way across the desert.

Don and Charlie had actually walked at a pretty fast pace earlier in the morning and had managed to cover quite a bit of ground. They were guessing that they had at least fifteen miles behind them now, but if Charlie had been right about the distance, they still had another fifteen to go.

Samantha had wanted to walk after breakfast but the brother's knew they had to move fast and she would not have been able to keep up with them, so they had taken turns carrying her on their backs.

They paused now for a much needed drink of water and gazed at the foothills on the horizon.

"How hot do you think it is?" Charlie asked as he bent his head and used the sleeve of his tee shirt to wipe the sweat from his face.

"Dunno. " Don grunted and drained the last drop of water from his bottle. He tossed the empty bottle back in the bag, careful not to leave any signs that they had passed this way. "But it's going to get hotter…the sun's not even all the way up yet."

"Hot. " Samantha repeated after him and thirstily drank her water. "All done." she said a few minutes later and quietly handed the bottle back to Charlie. There was a fourth of the liquid left in the bottle, so he carefully capped it and put it back in his bag. Every drop was precious to them now and they were careful not to waste any of it.

Don bent down and adjusted the little girls hat and then took her by the hand. With a nod at his brother they started out again, this time with the Sammy walking between them.

They kept a close eye on the desert behind them, watching carefully for any signs of pursuit; wary of any dust clouds that might be heading in their direction; dust clouds that might be caused by a fast moving vehicle.

But every now and then, they would just stop and glance at the sky behind them, hoping to see an FBI helicopter heading their way but the only evidence of any aircraft that Don and Charlie had seen so far were the distant vapor trails of jets as they flew across the sky; too far up in the atmosphere to take notice of two men and a little girl running for their lives.

TBC


	10. Chapter 10

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I truly appreciate your reviews and alerts. Thank you.

Chapter 10:

The excited voices from the next room were loud enough to break their concentration and David and his team turned to follow the activity. Something had just happened and the agents in the next conference room were talking excitedly and putting on their jackets. Agent Timothy Miller, the lead agent of the team, led the way out of the room but hesitated at the entrance to the adjoining conference room.

Miller pushed the door ajar and spoke to the agents from the doorway.

"Sinclair, we've located Don's SUV and we're on our way there now to check it out."

David hurried over to his side. "Where is it? "

Colby, Liz and Nikki rushed over to join them before Miller had a chance to answer the agent's question.

Miller's eyes flickered from agent to agent noting the worried expressions on all of their faces; they were a close team and it was easy to understand their anxiety in the loss of not only their SAC but the Professor as well.

"I'm sorry." he said shaking his head slowly. "We just don't have a lot of information yet. All we know is that our GPS tracking data shows Don's car in the San Gabriel Mountains. Mount Wilson to be more specific and its stationary somewhere off of the Angeles Crest Highway." He glanced toward the elevator when another agent called to him. "Look, I gotta go. I'll call you as soon as I know something."

Colby let out a whistle. "The San Gabriels….what the hell are they doing up there?"

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"_Put one foot in front of the other." _

This had become a mantra to Don as he walked toward the foothills but he couldn't remember the name of the poem that the verse was from. It helped him ignore the incessant heat from the scorching sun and the relentless wind as it continually pummeled them with hot air. Periodically they would be hit with an exceptionally strong gust of wind that would force them to stop and drop into a tight huddle, placing Samantha in the middle to protect her from the harsh sand blasts that came with the breeze.

The terrain was getting tougher to cross as well. They could no longer travel in a straight path, the relatively flat ground was now dotted with rock formations and high sand dunes. Several times they had to alter their course and go around a particularly steep sand dune or waste precious time and energy just trying to get over it. Thick scrub brush and rows of prickly cacti forced them to skirt around them in their efforts to get to the foothills.

Don glanced sideways at his brother who appeared to be laboring under the child's weight. She only weighed thirty-five pounds but under these conditions even the bottles in the bag at his side were becoming heavy.

Sammy's small arms were clinging tightly around Charlie's neck and she had her legs wrapped around his waist with her little feet tucked in the crook of his elbows. Her small head lay upon his shoulder and from the way her body was slumped against Charlie's back she must have had fallen asleep again.

"Let's take a break. " Don said, pointing toward the trees. "There's a little shade over there…at least it's better than nothing. "

He turned to go in that direction but was caught by surprise when his brother kept on walking.

"Charlie! Didn't you hear me?" He hurried to catch up to him and grabbed his arm, pulling him abruptly to a stop. Charlie was muttering something under his breath and Don could swear that it sounded like some kind of mathematical calculations.

"Hey!" he said, his voice rising with concern. "We need to take a break and it's my turn to carry Sammy."

Charlie looked up with a bewildered expression on his face. "Huh?" He swayed slightly from the sudden stop and Don put his hand under his elbow to help steady him.

"What are you doing? Come on, let's go over there and sit in the shade." He turned toward the group of trees but waited to make sure that Charlie was going to follow him.

"Oh. Sorry. I was just working on some figures." Charlie mumbled absently as he headed over to the trees.

Don lifted the little girl from his brother's back and laid her in the coolest spot that he could find. She had grown increasingly listless as the sun rose higher in the sky and it appeared that even a child's energy could be quelled by the extreme heat of the desert.

Charlie lifted the bag from his shoulders and sank wearily to his knees beside of the little girl, removing his hat and tucking it beneath his knee so that the wind couldn't blow it away. He pulled off his make shift bandanna and wrung it out before tying it loosely around his neck to dry. He bent over and removed Sammy's hat and then pulled a torn piece of cloth from his bag and gently wiped the sweat away from her face and neck, pushing her wet hair back behind her ears.

"How's she doing?" Don asked quietly as he sat down on the other side of her.

"Okay, I guess." Charlie responded worriedly.

He looked up just as Don closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the tree. Charlie carefully studied his brother and was amazed at his appearance. The effects of the trek had transformed him; he hardly resembled the Don Eppes that he had driven out with the day before. His brother had also removed his hat and bandanna, presenting Charlie with a clear view of his face. There were dark circles beneath his eyes and his face had darkened from his exposure to the sun, except where the dark stubble of his beard had grown. His hair was sticking out in all directions and the sand in his hair made it appear lighter in color. Loose threads hanging from the ripped sleeves of his shirt fluttered in the wind and caught Charlie's attention. His eyes traveled over the rest of Don's clothing, noting that his normally neat attire was now sweat soaked, dirty, sand covered and crumpled from their constant wear. He looked more like a drifter than an FBI agent.

"_He looks so different." _Charlie thought to himself. "_Anyone that saw him now would have to do a double-take to recognize Don Eppes. _

He looked away guiltily and swallowed hard before returning his gaze to his brother's face. "_My fault…..it's my fault that he looks like this. I pushed him into coming out here in the first place and then I suggested walking across the desert to the hills…..my fault that he got hurt yesterday. I've got to find a way to get him out of this."_

"Charlie?"

Startled, Charlie blinked and realized that Don's eyes were open. Embarrassed, he ducked his head and quickly looked away.

"What's going on Charlie?"

Charlie looked back and met his gaze. "I ah…..I'm sorry Don."

"What did you do?" he asked as his expression changed to one of puzzlement.

"What did I do?" Charlie asked incredulously. "I practically forced you to come out here yesterday and almost got you killed…..which might still happen by the way. We're walking across the desert and if it doesn't kill us, the kidnappers might still catch up to us and finish the job and …..and you look terrible. You should see yourself." He stopped ranting when Don's face broke into a grin.

"No offense Buddy, but I think that you look worse than I do."

Self-consciously, Charlie scratched at the stubble on his own face and glanced down at his own attire, realizing that his brother was probably seeing the same thing that he was.

Don scooted over and squeezed his shoulder. "Charlie you have no idea how glad I am that you convinced me to come with you." His eyes drifted down to the sleeping child and lingered there as he spoke in a voice thick with emotion. "Before we started out yesterday, I was sure that we were going to find her too late…you know…like the others." He raised his head and gazed into his brothers eyes. "But all of that changed when we found her and now we have a chance to get her back to her family." Don's eyes softened as he continued. "You gave us that chance Charlie and you have nothing to apologize for. Our coming out here has given this little girl another chance at life and no matter how tough it gets, it's worth it and I wouldn't have it any other way." His lips curved upward in a slight smile as he added. "I'm proud of you Buddy."

Charlie ducked his head, not wanting his brother to see the unshed tears in his eyes. The emotion in his brothers voice and the overwhelming warmth in his eyes made Charlie realize that they had finally broken through the barrier that had been created in their childhood and now only love, friendship and respect for each other remained.

"Thanks." he said softly and met his brothers eyes, reflecting the same warm glow back too him.

Samantha stirred, drawing their attention and ending their discussion. They tried to keep the mood light for her and not let her know how worried they were about their situation. She opened her eyes and yawned widely as she gazed up at both of them.

Charlie smiled at her. "Hello sleepy head." He stretched out his hand and patted her hand softly. "Are you thirsty?"

She nodded her head and sat up as Don scooted backwards to reach the bag. He searched through it for her water bottle and moments later removed the cap and handed it to her. Only a fourth of the water was left in the bottle, but it would have to be enough to hold her over until lunch.

"Drink it slowly, don't gulp it down or it might make you sick."

"Okay." she said as she put the bottle to her lips.

Don removed two half empty bottles and quickly handed one of them to his brother. The water was warm but it still felt wonderful sliding down his parched throat but he forced himself to only drink a fourth as well, and capped the bottle before he was tempted to drink more. He frowned at their dwindling water supply. Even though they had been drinking sparingly, the water still appeared to be disappearing at a fast clip. A sudden thought occurred to him and he turned to his brother.

"What were you muttering about anyway? You know….when we first came over here?" Don asked, tilting his head slightly. At Charlie's hesitation he added sarcastically. "Tell me that you haven't been trying to calculate how many grains of sand there are in the Mojave Desert."

"Of course not, that would be impossible." Charlie scoffed as he took a sip of water and then paused as if he was thinking over a problem. "I mean, to do that, one would have to know the exact depth of each section of the Mojave……"

"Charlie." Don cut him off as he leaned his head back and closed his eyes; he just wasn't in the mood to hear about a mathematical theory.

"….and then, of course, the wind gusts would have to be taken into consideration…." Although Charlie's voice sounded hoarse and raspy he was really getting into it now and his arms were beginning to move around enthusiastically as his explanation became more involved.

Sammy eyed them curiously and her head turned from one brother to the other as they talked, like she was watching a tennis match.

"Charlie." Don's throat was just as dry and raspy as his brother's but this time he spoke a little louder.

"….not to mention the fierce storms that move tremendous amounts of sand around…." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I suppose there are a number of applications that I might employ to…."

"Charlie!"

Charlie blinked and stared at him. "What?"

"I was only joking." Don narrowed his eyes as he studied his brother's face. "Are you sure the sun isn't getting to you?"

Charlie untied the cloth around his neck and retied it back around his forehead before answering. "I was joking too and besides, I think the sun is getting to you more than it is to me."

He took another sip of water and his lips curved upward into a mischievous smile. He had noticed that Sammy was enjoying their antics so he thought he would keep it going a little longer.

Don eyed him suspiciously. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"What's the name of that song that you've been singing?"

Now it was Don's turn to look bewildered. "Song?" What song? I haven't been singing any song."

"It sounded like you were singing but maybe you were just repeating the same verse over and over again."

"Did not."

"Did so."

Samantha giggled at the playful tone of their voices encouraging the brothers to continue with their banter.

Don squirmed self-consciously and retied the make shift bandanna around his head. "I don't know what you're talking about. You must have been hearing things."

'I don't think so. Let's see now…..how did it go?" He mused out loud and winked at the little girl, prompting another giggle. "Oh, I know. It went something like this. Put one foot in front of the other. I've heard the quote before but I don't remember who wrote it."

The sunburn on his face hid Don's blush as he looked away. "I didn't realize that I was talking…or… singing out loud." He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't remember where I heard the quote from either."

Charlie tilted his head. "That's okay. I didn't mind." A grin crossed his features as he tucked his water bottle into his bag and put his hat back on.

Don smiled back as he stood up and put his own hat on. "We'd better get moving if we want to make it to the mountains by nightfall."

Charlie's eyes drifted toward the distant mountain range. He was sure that "the mesa" was over the right ridge of the lower foothills, and from there, it was a short walk to Hesperia's city limits and help.

Of course they had to get there first and his shoulders drooped at the thought. He rubbed at his eyes and stared at their destination. There was a purple haze on the horizon where the mountains met the desert floor and the distant vision seemed to shimmer in the sunlight, making it appear almost surreal.

Charlie felt a hand on his shoulder and he looked up in surprise. His thoughts had strayed and now worry darkened his expressive brown eyes.

"Don." He said softly. "Do you think Dad is okay? He must know by now that we're both missing and that has to be really hard on him….and he's not as young as he used to be." He looked away. "I…I don't want to lose him."

Don's eyes softened even more. "I'm worried about him too Charlie, but Dad is strong and he won't give up hope. And he won't have to face this alone, don't forget that Robin, Amita and Larry will be there for him too as well as the rest of our team."

Charlie nodded his head in agreement. "You're right. He won't give up."

"Ready?" Don asked as he held his hand down to him.

Charlie grabbed his hand and let him pull him up and then picked up the bag that contained their remaining water and food.

Don knelt down next to the little girl. "Are you ready to go for another ride sweetie?"

The little girl sighed and climbed to her feet.

Charlie took her water bottle and screwed the lid on tightly before putting it in the bag at his waist, and then he lifted her up and placed her on his brother's back.

Charlie patted her gently on the back as she put her arms around Don's neck. He slipped his brothers belt around her back, threading it underneath Don's arms until he could buckle it across his chest. It had been necessary to punch a new hole in his belt so that it wouldn't fit too tightly around either of them but just tight enough to ensure that the little girl wouldn't slide from their shoulders if she fell asleep. Don tucked the little girl's feet in the crook of his elbows and they started forward, side by side.

"You can recite or sing the quote if you want to." Charlie teased him to try and keep the little girls spirits up.

"Shut up Charlie." Don retorted playfully.

"It is a song and I know it." Sammy piped up with a little more energy in her voice.

"You do?" Don asked, sharing a grin with Charlie. "Why don't you sing it for us while we walk to the hills?"

"That's a good idea." Charlie added encouragingly. "But keep you head down so your hat can keep the sun off of your face. Okay?" He asked as he adjusted the hat so it covered her head and face completely.

"Kwis….Kwingle…sang…it…to old man wintew."

Charlie lifted the edge of her hat to catch the little girl's eye "He did huh?" he asked playfully.

"Uh…huh." Sammy answered excitedly. "Wanna heaw it? I like it a lot."

Charlie lowered the rim of her hat. "Go ahead and sing. Maybe you can teach Uncle Donnie the rest of the song." he said, unable to prevent the smile that was spreading across his face.

"Funny Charlie, funny."

Sammy's muffled giggle seemed to make the heat a little more bearable and for a short while her song made their steps a little lighter.

"Put ..one foot.. n fwont of the othew." She sang slowly, pronouncing the words as only a five year old could.

An… soon…you'll be…walkin..cwoss the floow

Put ....one foot…n…fwont of ..the…othew

An…soon you'll….be…walkin…out…the doow

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Robin stepped anxiously from the elevator and glanced around the floor. As soon as the Judge had called for a recess, she had hurried over to the FBI Office. Although she had been in constant touch with the ADIC and Don's team, it still wasn't enough; there had to be something that she could do to help with the investigation. Her fear for Don's safety and Charlie's as well, was almost overwhelming, prompting her to take some kind of physical action. Her steps slowed as she moved around the office noting a number of people standing in front of one of the large wall plasma screened TV's.

There was a breaking news banner flashing across the bottom of the screen and a live video feed was coming from the front of the FBI building. Robin stepped up behind the crowd and listened intently.

_"This is Emory Washington of the Channel 6 news, reporting to you live from the Federal Bureau of Investigations Los Angeles Headquarters with an exclusive breaking story. We have just received confirmation that Special Agent Don Eppes and his brother, Professor Charles Eppes are missing. The FBI has launched an official investigation into their disappearance._

_Agent Eppes is the lead agent in charge of investigating yesterday's abduction of little Samantha Wilkins, and his brother, Professor Eppes, is a consultant on that case. It is not known at this time if their disappearance is related to the kidnapping case."_

"The media sure moved fast on this one." A soft voice spoke up behind her.

Robin turned around to face the speaker and immediately embraced him in a hug. "Oh, Alan. Are you okay?"

Alan patted her back softly. "Yeah, I'm fine."

She stepped back and thoughtfully studied his face.

Uncomfortable under her scrutiny, he shrugged and added. "Well, as fine as anyone could be under these circumstances."

"How do you think they found out about it so quickly?" she asked with a nod toward the news broadcast.

Alan shrugged again and crossed his arms. "I don't know. The reporters certainly seem to have contacts everywhere these days."

Her eyes searched his face. "Have you heard anything?"

He shook his head. "Agent Miller is out so I asked David if he had heard anything. Come on, I'll tell you what he told me over a cup of coffee.

"Sounds good to me. " She said and hooked her arm through his and they made their way to the beak room.

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All talk ceased and everyone became focused on David when his phone rang. He quickly flipped it open. "Sinclair." You found Don's car? Where? Really?" David rubbed his forehead. "Any sign of Don or Charlie? " He held his breath, afraid of the answer….afraid that Miller was going to tell him that they were too late; that his friend's dead bodies were found in the car. "Nothing? Yeah. Okay, thanks." He closed his phone and shoved it back into his pocket.

Colby's brow furrowed and he leaned forward. "David?"

"They found Don's car about an hour ago."

Colby stood up quickly. "Where?"

"Abandoned near a trail head in the San Gabriel Mountains but there's no sign of Don or Charlie."

Colby's eyes widened in surprise. "No sign of them. What does that mean?"

Nikki let out a whistle. "It could take months to search those mountains."

"What about their cell phones?" Liz asked. "Have they located them yet?"

"Miller's all over that." David said, trying to answer all three questions at the same time. "They have their GPS signals but they're showing up in two separate locations. One of the phones is stationary and they're zeroing in on that one right now but the other one is moving along one of the trail heads and his agents haven't caught up to it yet." He paused and rubbed his face tiredly.

Colby snapped his fingers. "Charlie's laptop! Tell Miller to track that and I'll bet we'll find Don and Charlie."

David shook his head. "They already have it Colby. It was in the car."

Crestfallen, Colby sat on the edge of the table. "Did Miller have anything else to say?"

"The forensic team just arrived and will be towing the SUV back to LA within the hour but to speed things up, they've already e-mailed some of the prints they found to Jackson." He nodded to one of the two agents that were still working in the other conference room. "There is something odd though. Miller said that they found another set of tire tracks but only one set of footprints were found at the scene." He jammed his hands into his pockets again and paced around the room.

Colby crossed his arms and leaned against the table. "There should be at least two sets of footprints. Someone had to drive the cars out there."

"There have to be tracks…..unless…." Nikki paused with an agonized light in her eyes.

"They were carried from the vehicle. " Colby said grimly, finishing her sentence for her. "But as I said before, there would still have to be at least two sets of footprints."

"Maybe the driver of the other vehicle never got out." David said as he sat down heavily in his chair. He glanced up at the worried faces of his team and tried to put his own fears aside for the moment. They couldn't help Don and Charlie but maybe they could find that little girl.

"Let's get back to work." he said quietly. "Samantha Wilkins is still out there."

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Juan turned off the ignition and hopped out of the truck. Now that they knew their captives were still in the fields, all they had to do was find the point where they entered them and just follow their trail.

Feeling success at his fingertips, Juan's mood had improved considerably and with a renewed energy he began to search the ground in front of the old house for footprints. It didn't take him very long to discover the agent's tracks.

"Look at this Rico." he called out.

Rico hurried over and Juan knelt down as he pointed out several footprints to his cousin. Suddenly he stood up and nudged his Rico excitedly. "It won't be long now. Come on." Juan checked the ammo in his rifle and Rico pulled out Don's gun and together they entered the fields anticipating a very short search.

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"Colby did you get anything from WAFA on the male immigrants that are working the onion farms?"

"There are 7,000 day laborers and farm workers David. I'm running all of the male photographs through our facial recognition software and comparing them against the sketch but so far we don't have a match."

"How many migrant labor camps are there?"

"One hundred to one hundred and fifty but I'm going to narrow the search to those that are closest to the onion farms."

David picked up the sketch and shook his head. "If he's here illegally we're not going to find him in the database."

Liz looked up and nodded toward the outer office. "Miller is back and Wright is with him."

They all looked up and watched as the ADIC and Miller's team walked by them and entered the next conference room. They were only in the room for a few minutes when the assistant director pointed toward David's team and Miller and his other team members began to gather up their folders and equipment and followed Wright out of the room.

Wright pushed open the door to their conference room and led everyone inside.

"Agent Sinclair, Agent Miller has found evidence linking the Eppes's disappearance with your kidnapping case.'

"What evidence?" David quickly crossed the distance between them.

"We found a set of fingerprints that matched one set in our database." Miller informed them.

Colby jumped up. "Let's go get that son of a bitch!"

Wright shook his head. "We don't know who he is."

Nikki crossed her arms and tilted her head to the side. "You just said that you found a match."

Miller shook his head. "I said that we found a match in our data base but we can't identify him." He glanced around at the puzzled expressions. "They're a perfect match to your kidnapper's prints."

"You're in charge Agent Sinclair. " The ADIC informed him. "Miller will brief you on what they have discovered and his team will be at your disposal if you need them." He pushed the door open and turned around with his hand on the door.

"Bring them home Sinclair."

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It was midday now and the sun was at its highest point and its ray's beat down on them mercilessly. Don glanced up at the sun and squinted, covering his eyes with his hand. Nothing but pristine blue sky as far as the eye could see, not even a cloud overhead to provide a brief shade once in a while. They had been pushing pretty hard since their last break and it was past time to find some shade and take a short rest.

Twelve-thirty and the sun was a huge fireball that seemed to follow their movements and somehow managed to stay directly above them as they trudged through the desert sand. The heat was almost unbearable and Don had to stop for a moment to catch his breath. He staggered to a stand still and grabbed his brother's elbow as he walked by to gain his footing.

"We need to stop for a while." Don panted. "It's time to have some lunch."

Charlie gazed at the terrain in search of some shade and then pointed to a couple of Joshua trees lined on one side by a cluster of cactus and Yucca Scrub.

"How about over there?" He asked pointing toward the area.

"It'll do." Don mumbled as he turned and stumbled toward the spot.

A male red-tailed hawk eyed them suspiciously from his perch atop one of the Joshua trees and its head swiveled around as he tracked their movements. The bird took to the air abruptly with an angry call when the small group sat down beneath his tree.

They watched it fly to another group of trees and land in the very top of one of them. The bird swayed with the breeze but managed to look fierce as he kept a beady eye on the intruders below him.

"Did you see the size of that hawk?" Charlie asked, keeping an eye on the bird. "He's huge…he has to have a wingspan of at least five feet."

"Guess he didn't like out company." Don said sarcastically, seemingly unimpressed. "Just be grateful that we're a little higher on the food chain than he is."

"Speaking of food." Charlie said as he pulled the blanket out of the bag. "I'm starving."

They sat in a small circle on the blanket in a slightly shady area provided by the large row of cactus and yucca scrub.

Charlie grimaced on the third bite of his bread and decided to take larger bites because the sun and the wind were literally sucking the moisture from his meal. The first bite had been normal, the bread was crusty on his second bite and by the third he was eating peanut butter toast. He finished it off in another two bites but the last piece had been barely chewable.

Samantha's mood had changed drastically and for the first time the brothers discovered that she had another side to her personality; one that was beginning to tax their patience.

Samantha made a face as she took another bite of her folded slice of peanut butter bread. "Hard." she said trying to hand it back to Don.

"It's all we have sweetheart. You'll have to eat that one." Don said gently as he took another bite of his bread. "I don't understand it. Look at this…it's…like…like a piece of toast."

"You both need to eat it really fast before all of the moisture gets sucked out of it." Charlie said and gulped down a sip of water to help wash the rest of his meal down. "Sammy you need to eat your sandwich before it gets too hard."

Irritably she glared at him and then suddenly she threw her sandwich at him. "No! Don't want it!" she cried loudly.

Charlie was caught by surprise but still managed to catch the bread before it hit the ground. "Very well." he said with more patience than he felt. "I'll put it back in the bag and you can eat it later." He unsealed the bread bag and tossed it in, resealing the bag quickly before the moisture could be sucked from the remaining slices.

Sammy stretched her small hand out toward the bag and demanded. "Want anothew one…..a soft one."

"No Sammy." Don said firmly. "You have to eat that one, the rest is for our dinner tonight."

They were down to five slices of bread now and three would be used for dinner, leaving only two slices left for breakfast but if luck was with them, tomorrow they would be having lunch in Hesperia.

Samantha was tired, hot, and hungry and she wanted to go home. She pouted and glared at her two new uncles; her lower lip began to quiver and she promptly burst into tears which is why the brothers missed the first "hiss" and failed to hear the rattle….….until it vibrated around the clearing …. a second time.

**TBC**

A/N: The song "Put one Foot in Front of the other" is from the animated version of "Santa Claus is coming to Town." The quote that Don and Charlie are thinking of was written by an Irishman named Brandan.


	11. Chapter 11

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: You guys are awesome! Thank you so much for your reviews.

I am going on vacation this Friday and will not return until the 13th. If I can arrange it I will post Chapter 12 during the week that I return, but if not, it will definitely be up on the weekend. I hope to see you then.

Chapter 11:

Death is a way of life for the inhabitants of the desert. They are all a part of the food chain, even the predators, which are at the top of the food chain, will eventually die and return nutrients to the soil by decomposers.

There is one inhabitant, however, that even the predators will try to avoid. People who live near the Mojave call him "the bad boy of the Desert" and rightly so. The Mojave Rattler has earned its reputation; where other rattlers will hide from a predator; he will confront them and strike. He is not one to be trifled with, he is irritable on his best days and he is considered to be the deadliest of all of the rattlers with venom that is sixteen times more powerful than that of the Sidewinder.

The "Mojave Green" as he is sometimes called, does not look for trouble….nor will he run from it.

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Alan and Robin wandered out of the break room just in time to hear Wright's last words to David. They gave a nod to the ADIC as he passed them by and hurried into the conference room

"Did they find them?" Alan asked breathlessly as he burst into the room.

"You've been given the case haven't you? "Robin asked before David could answer. She glanced around the room taking in the stacks of files and boxes. "You've found evidence that links the two cases together."

Alan anxiously took a step closer to the agent. "Is that true? That...that deranged killer has my sons?"

David glanced away for a minute before meeting his gaze. He liked Alan and respected him a great deal and had often imagined that his own father would be like him today if he had lived. The agent would have given almost anything to be able to give the elder Eppes some good news but instead he shook his head slowly and could only tell him what they had found.

"It's true Alan and we've located Don's car. We found it parked near the Angeles Crest highway in the San Gabriel Mountains." He raised his hand to forestall the question that he knew was coming. "There was no sign of Don or Charlie."

His eyes drifted back to Robin. "You're right." he said simply. "It turns out that it is the same case. The forensic team took some preliminary prints from Don's car and e-mailed them back to Miller's team. Those prints matched the ones that we found in the truck that was used in Samantha Wilkes's kidnapping."

"The San Gabriel's?" Alan sat down heavily in a chair. "Why…. it could take weeks to search the mountains for them." he looked up fearfully. "What if they're injured or…." he voice cracked and he couldn't say the words.

"SRG is doing a thorough search Alan. If Don and Charlie are up there, they will find them." David responded with more conviction than he felt.

Robin narrowed her eyes and studied him. "You've decided not to go up and help with the search, haven't you?"

David nodded his head. "SRG has all of the manpower they need and besides we really need to get things moving on this end."

Liz crossed her arms. "So what's next?"

"Don had a feeling that our kidnapper might be an immigrant farmer; make that an immigrant onion farmer. So I'll think we'll continue along those lines."

"Is there something that I can help with?" Alan pleaded, coming to his feet. "I need to do something to help find my boys."

"That makes two of us David. There must be something that we can help you with?" Robin said and at his hesitation added in her most authoritative tone of voice. "We're both staying here anyway, so you might as well put us to work."

David sighed, knowing full well that he would just be wasting valuable time if he tried to make them leave, and besides, he told himself, he really could use the help. "Colby how many immigrants did you say that WAFA had listed?"

"Over 7,000 and I'm still checking on the number of onion farms."

"Show Alan and Robin the files and let them sort through them." He turned to Alan as a sudden thought occurred to him. "Are Amita and Larry coming over soon? I need them to try and figure out what Charlie was looking at. If they can do that, I'm pretty sure that it will tell us where Don and Charlie were going."

"They should be here soon." Alan answered and then paused. "You don't think that they're up in the mountains, do you?"

David shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans and walked around the room.

"I can't explain it, but something just doesn't feel right about that."

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Don swallowed hard and stared at the snake. The reptile had to be at least four feet long from the tip of its tongue to the end of its tail. Slithering from side to side, it angrily hissed and rattled its tail at them, daring them to make a move.

The rattle sounded ominous to his ears each time it vibrated, like a bell ringing a death toll for one of them. It was within striking distance of all three of them and his heart fluttered at the thought of it biting his brother or the little girl.

He could see Samantha out of the corner of his eye and was relieved that she had stopped crying and was sitting just as still as he and Charlie were. She didn't seem to be afraid of it, but then, she would be too young to understand how dangerous it was. Instead she appeared mesmerized by the viper as its head continually swayed to and fro and its tongue flickered in and out. It was almost as if she was being hypnotized by its motions.

The pole that he had been carrying lay on the ground next to his hand and his fingers closed slowly around it. "_No sudden movements_." he told himself. "_Not yet." _Sweat slid down the side of his face but he didn't dare make a move to wipe it away.

Desperate scenarios flooded through his mind but not one of them came back with the solution that he was hoping for. He needed a plan that would get all three of them safely away from the snake without being bitten and all of his ideas ended up with at least one of them getting struck by the deadly viper.

As luck would have it, they had stumbled upon one of the deadliest animals in the Mojave Desert and one bite from it would mean certain death because this snake's particular venom not only attacked the nervous system of its victims but also released hemotoxins into the bloodstream.

Somehow he had to get the snake away from his brother and the little girl. If he drew the snake's attention to himself would he be fast enough to deflect a strike? If he could ask his brother's opinion he was sure that he would say that the odds were with the rattler.

Nevertheless, Don stared into the expressionless eyes of the snake and clenched his jaw tightly; he would take that risk if it meant giving Charlie and Sammy a chance to get away.

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Their heels clicked loudly on the cement floor as David and Colby made their way to the section of the FBI garage where the forensic team was busy checking over Don's SUV.

"Which bay is it in?"

Colby glanced down at the paper in his hand and then scanned the garage. "Over there. Bay 3."

One of the technicians had just removed the left rear wheel and was on his knees peering up into the empty wheel well.

'Hey Pete. Come and take a look at this." Todd Hendricks, a short balding man of forty-two, called to his partner as he continued to pan his flashlight around the well.

Peter Talman, the other forensic technician rose up from his position at the front of the vehicle and hurried over to Hendricks side just as David and Colby joined them.

"Hey David, what brings you down here?" Todd asked, twisting around so that he could see him clearly. "I thought this was Miller's case."

""It was, but it's our case now." David answered in a quiet voice.

"Did you guys find anything?" Colby interrupted impatiently.

"Actually we are just getting started but I did find something interesting in the wheel well." Todd said pointing behind him. "Take a look at this?"

David and Colby both squatted down and peered at the area where Todd was aiming a flashlight.

"What am I looking at Todd?"

"Sand, David, lots and lots of sand. Do you know if Agent Eppes drove this car across the desert recently?"

Colby shared a surprised look with his partner. "Desert?"

"That's what I said and look at this." He straightened up and rubbed a gloved finger over the side of the SUV. "There is a fine coating of sand all over the car and this doesn't happen in the mountains."

"But aren't there some routes that you can take to the mountains that cross the Mojave?" Colby countered.

"That's true Granger and that might account for the dusting but it wouldn't for the amount of sand in the wheel wells." He turned and perused the well again. "This much sand would only accumulate from driving across the desert."

"Don's car was clean yesterday. " David looked away thoughtfully. "As a matter of fact, Charlie spread a map out over the hood. If you check the back of that map you'll see that there isn't any sand on it."

Peter shook his head. "We haven't found a map yet but we did find the Professor's laptop in the car."

"Is Charlie's laptop still in the car?" David asked excitedly, moving toward the SUV.

"No, it's already in the lab. Why?"

"Tell them to put a rush on it. I have a couple of consultants that will need to see it."

"Our techs will want to check out the data." Todd stated as a matter of fact.

"Yeah." Colby snorted "Like they're going to be able to break Charlie's encryptions."

"And your consultants can?" Pete scoffed in return.

"They work with him; they'll stand a better chance than your guys." David turned to leave. "Tell them ASAP Todd. Don and Charlie's life might depend on it."

Peter and Todd shared a grim look as the agents walked away and before they made it to the elevator, Todd was on the phone with the lab.

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Charlie sat perfectly still, afraid to even take a deep breath and broke out in a cold sweat. It wasn't easy to control the panic that was building up inside of him but he knew that he couldn't make any sound.

His eyes were locked on the snake, conscious of its every movement as it wavered back and forth in front of him. In his heightened state of awareness he could clearly see every detail of the serpent. The triangular head where its cold dark eyes peered back at him and watched his every movement. A forked tongue that was so black that it almost appeared blue in the midday sun, the diamond-shaped markings that covered the scales on its thick, sinuous body and of course, the rattle at the tip of its tail.

He became aware of how quiet the little clearing had become, even the insects had gone silent with the appearance of the viper and he swallowed a sigh of relief that the little girl had stopped crying. The serpent's savage hiss and angry rattle seemed to drown out any other sounds around them, even the sound of the wind seemed diminished by its presence.

Charlie's fingers closed reflexively over the bag that lay across his lap and an idea began to form in his mind. If he could toss the bag over the snakes head it might give Don enough time to pull Sammy out of the way. There was a flaw in his plan however; could he do it before the snake struck him? Any sudden movement would almost assuredly cause it to strike one of them and the odds of surviving a bite were too small to even calculate.

He was sitting cross-legged on the blanket, not exactly the best position to attempt his attack from but even if he failed he would still succeed in drawing the viper's attention away from Don and Sammy.

"_It can't end this way……not like this." he thought desperately." _They had come too far and struggled too hard to get Sammy home to let her die here, like this. It had been his idea to cross the desert; true, it had been the only logical choice that they could have made at the time but still, he had thought of it. Despite what Don had said to him earlier, he knew that it was his fault that they were now facing imminent death. "_No." he thought, gritting his teeth. "He couldn't….he wouldn't let Don and Sammy die here."_

Charlie's fingers tightened around the bag and his resolved strengthened. He would take the risk; draw the snake's attention to himself if it meant that his brother and the little girl would have a chance to live.

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David weaved his way through the crowded conference room until he could stand near the plasma screen on the wall. Liz, Colby and Nikki were working on laptops at one end of a table while Alan and Robin sorted through file folders at the other end. Amita and Larry had just arrived and were opening up their laptops at another table while Miller and his team took up standing positions around the room.

"Don had a suspicion that our killer might be an immigrant farmer working on one of the local onion farms." David said, beginning the briefing. " We're going to continue on that premise." He nodded to Colby who clicked a few buttons on his laptop.

An enlarged copy of the sketch was displayed on the screen behind David.

"The Mexican authorities believe that this man was responsible for three similar murders in several small border towns. The last victim was killed in Tecate, approximately one month before Janet Martin was assaulted and killed. We now believe that this man has crossed the border and is here in Los Angeles."

"According to our eye witness, the man we are looking for also has a tattoo on his left forearm." Colby added as he pressed a few keys on his laptop. "This is an artist's rendering of that tattoo. It covers most of his forearm and one of the spider's legs stretches across his wrist."

"Tim, I need two of your men to check out the local tattoo parlors and see if they can find anyone who might recognize that design. I also want you to lead a team out to all of the onion farms in the LA area. Show the farm workers this sketch and see if someone recognizes him. Even if he is here illegally, someone might know him."

"Any news on Don or the Professor? Has SRG come up with anything?" Miller asked.

"SRG is still searching the area. Were you able to find both of their cell phones?"

"Yeah, we found one of them in the pocket of a hiker. He's a student from UCLA doing research for a paper on Mount Wilson's Electronics Reservation. The kid said that he found it near the beginning of the trail and was going to turn it in at the ranger's station on his way out." he shrugged his shoulders. " His story checks out." Miller picked up a handful of sketches and passed them around to his men. "The phones are in the forensic lab and Agent Stendhouser is doing a trace of their phone calls."

"Good. Why don't you guys get started and I'll let you know if we hear anything else."

With a nod of his head, he and his team collected the farm addresses from Liz and hurried out of the door.

"If you don't think Don and Charlie are in the mountains, why don't you call off the search?" Alan's brow furrowed in puzzlement.

"Someone went to a lot of trouble to make us think that they're in those mountains." he murmured thoughtfully. "As a matter of fact, it won't hurt to let them think that they were successful."

"I'll have someone notify the media." Liz said as she opened up her phone. "I guarantee that it'll be all over the news within fifteen minutes and they'll have camera crew up there in thirty."

David just nodded and rubbed his hand over his face tiredly. "_What would Don do now_?" _he thought to himself. "Have I forgotten anything?" _But second guessing himself wasn't going to help find his friends so he forced his thoughts back to the evidence.

He glanced around the room, taking in the photos of the children, and all of the files. Lost in thought he wandered past Larry and Amita and overheard part of their conversation.

Larry was patting her on the back, apparently offering solace. "Now Amita, you know as well as I do that once Charles is obsessed with an idea there is no way to dissuade him from his path."

Amita was worried about Charlie and feeling guilty about not pursuing the missed phone calls last night as were Alan and Robin. His eyes drifted to them: Robin had tried not to show it but he could see the fear in her eyes, and Alan, he was barely holding himself together. David could see panic and guilt etched into his features; panic at the thought of losing both of his sons and guilt because he hadn't checked the voice-mails last night. That was the real reason that David had let him stay, Alan had no one else. But even as he thought it, David realized that it wasn't true. Alan did have someone else, he had them. Somehow he, Colby and Liz had become an extension to his family; even Nikki was working her way into their close knit group. Despite everything that was going on, David felt a feeling of warmth spread through him and realized that he felt the same way too. They were a family….and two of its members were missing.

His steps had brought him to the large plasma screen and he gazed up at the sketch of the suspect.

"Are you okay man? You seem a little distracted." Colby commented as he joined him.

Startled, David turned to face his partner. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just trying to figure out what Don and Charlie saw that led them to our killer." His eyes drifted around the room again.

The answer was here; somewhere in the data that had been collected was the reason for their disappearance. They just had to figure it out and find them before it was too late.

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The snake had slithered to a stop halfway between Don and Charlie. It lifted itself one third clear of the ground, and stayed, balancing to and fro in front of them as if it was trying to decide which one of them to bite first; staring at them under hooded eyes while its black tongue darted in and out.

"_This is it." _Don thought as his grip tightened on the pole. "_That thing is not going to bite Charlie or Sammy!"_

"_Soon." _Charlie thought grimly, keeping his white-knuckled grip on the bag. _"I will not let it bite Don or Sammy!"_

The snakes head hovered in front of them and then suddenly its mouth gaped open revealing its fangs and without any form of communication Don and Charlie moved simultaneously.

At the first sign of movement the rattlesnake lunged forward.... and afterwards.... when the dust cleared, Samantha's terror-filled screams echoed eerily across the silent sands.

_TBC_

A/N: Note to Marsha: I was unable to find an address to reply to your very gracious review so I will do that here: I hope that you are feeling much better now and I truly appreciate your kind words.

A/N: I hate to leave you with a cliffe, but this chapter just couldn't end any other way.


	12. Chapter 12

-1

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews.

Chapter 12:

Nikki nudged Colby with her elbow and nodded toward the conference room across from them.

"I wouldn't wish that job on anyone." She commented softly.

Colby looked up and frowned as he watched David open the door for Mr. and Mrs. Wilkins and then followed them into the room.

"Yeah." he agreed. "That's not an easy one to handle and it's even tougher when a child is involved."

The agents watched in silence as the three of them sat down and David began to explain the progress that they had made in their daughter's kidnapping case… Mrs. Wilkins suddenly burst into tears and her husband put an arm around her, offering comfort even as he wiped at his own eyes.

Colby knew that David could have had someone else talk to them but he felt that in Don's absence it was his responsibility to inform the parents of their progress. Unfortunately, the only new information they had was that Don and Charlie had somehow crossed the kidnapper's path and were now missing themselves and he wasn't sure if David would tell them of the connection. So far, that part of the investigation wasn't public knowledge. The media was doing a good job of covering the search efforts in the Angeles Mountains where Don's car had been found, but as far as they were concerned, their disappearance was not related to the kidnapping case. Of course, that was exactly what the FBI wanted the kidnapper to think so that part of David's plan was working out very well.

Colby's computer beeped, letting him know that he had just received an email. He quickly opened it and let out a whistle as he read it.

Nikki's head came up and she moved her chair closer to his. "What have you got?"

"Check this out." Colby said turning his laptop at a more convenient angle so she could read it easier. "Charlie's last call went through a cell tower here in LA, but look where the cell tower was located for Don's last call."

Nikki's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Barstow. What in the hell were they doing out there?"

"That's a good question." Colby said and projected a map on the plasma screen. "Look at this." He said, running his finger along a section of the map. "The I-15 North to Barstow crosses the Mojave Desert."

Nikki nodded her head thoughtfully and murmured. "Yeah, isn't that interesting. A place where there just happens to be lots and lots of sand."

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Don grasped the pole with both hands and rose quickly to his knees. He held it like he was holding a baseball bat, easily falling back into his old stance and gripping it the way he used to when he played for the Stockton Rangers. For just a moment he had a clear view of the viper as it streaked toward him and then Charlie was moving and it was turning toward him.

"Charlie!" he shouted desperately. "Move!"

The snake suddenly disappeared and the sack that Charlie had been holding seemed to dance eerily in mid-air, but only for a split second, and then the bag slid sideways to reveal a dazed and even angrier rattler. But Charlie's diversion had given Don enough time to get to his feet; he took aim and swung the pole with all of his might just as a massive shadow appeared to rise up in front of him. Too late to check his swing, the pole continued its forward motion and met with nothing but air. The force of the swing sent the agent tumbling to the ground and with a yell he scrambled quickly to his knees.

Don's head swiveled around as he frantically looked for both the serpent and the mysterious shadow. Anticipating a strike at any moment, he staggered to his feet and gripped the pole tightly in his sweaty palms. Panting from the exertion of his swing he swallowed hard and fought against the panic that was rapidly growing inside of him.

"Where did it go? " he gasped. "Charlie what did you do? "

But Charlie didn't answer him and Don's heart was beating so loudly in his ears that it took him a moment to register the little girl's screams. Only then did he turn away as a sudden fearful thought occurred to him. "_Oh, God, did it have time to bite her…or Charlie!" _

Panic-stricken he turned to rush over to his brother's side when a shadow passed over him and he paused to glance skyward but all he saw was the hawk flying overhead so he hurried over to join his brother and the little girl.

Charlie was standing with his back turned toward Don and Sammy had her arms and legs tightly wrapped around him as he tried to console her. He was rocking her gently and rubbing small circles on her back in an effort to calm her down.

Don's eyes continuously roamed the clearing as he scanned for signs of the snake and even when he came to a standstill beside of his brother he continued to look around for the angry viper.

"What did you do?" he asked anxiously. "Where did it go?"

Charlie's head jerked up in alarm. "What do you mean?" He asked looking around fearfully. "I thought that you got it."

"No, I missed it because you jumped up in front of me." Don retorted bitterly as he perused the area.

Wide eyed, Charlie shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about. I dove in front of Sammy as soon as I threw the sack over it." Still holding the child, he began to turn anxiously around in circles while he scanned the ground around them.

"There's no one else here Charlie. It had to be you but what happened to the snake? "Don argued as he poked the bag and blanket with the pole.

A hint of anger joined the fear in Charlie's eyes as he glared at his brother. "Look, I told you that it wasn't me. I have no idea what you are talking about." He lowered his head and began to talk softly to Sammy.

Don glowered at him and opened his mouth to reply when the shadow flew overhead once again. He looked up and his eyes widened as the hawk circled lower over the clearing.

Charlie continued to murmur softly in the little girl's ear but his attention was drawn to the shadow and his head tilted skyward as he fearfully tracked its path. His eyes briefly met those of his brother before they both jerked around at the sound of a loud thud. Eyes wide with disbelief, the brothers stood speechless unable to believe what they were seeing

Ten feet from where they were standing the snake lay in a tangled heap where the red-tailed hawk had dropped it; the serpent lay motionless beneath the hot sun.

A female hawk called out loudly from another tree and then flew to the one that the male hawk had flown out of upon their arrival. It settled down in the top branches and called out again as it kept a beady eye on the people below. An answering call came suddenly from overhead, startling the brothers, and they looked up to find the male hawk circling above them.

"It must have a nest up there." Charlie said softly, his eyes following the movements of the bird flying above them.

"Lucky for us." Don murmured, keeping his own eyes on the aggressive hawk.

"Luck has never been mathematically proven." Charlie murmured absently as he watched the hawk warily. "What we have here is a logical chain of events."

"How so?" Don answered trying to keep an eye on both of the raptors.

"The female hawk is obviously sitting on eggs, snakes eat eggs and the hawks must have known that the serpent was hiding under the cactus but they couldn't get to it until the viper came out into the open."

"So we became the bait." Don stated in disbelief.

Charlie shrugged his shoulders. "It's more like we presented the hawks with a target of opportunity. It's a good thing too because the snake was faster than either one of us….only another force of nature could have been quicker than that viper."

Samantha hiccuped suddenly and her sobs began to lessen as she calmed down in Charlie's arms and he turned his attention back to her.

"Shh…shh…now. It's okay; the big bird killed the snake." He glanced cautiously at the hawk sitting in the nest. "The snake can't hurt us anymore."

"Is she okay? Did it bite her?" Don asked anxiously, meeting his brother's eyes as he stepped around to get a closer look at Sammy.

"I don't think so." Charlie said softly. "I think I pushed her out of the way in time but I haven't been able to really look her over yet."

"Let's see if we can get her to stand up so we can check her out."

"Right." Charlie agreed and slowly knelt down. Samantha looked up in surprise when he pulled her away from him and started to panic when her feet hit the ground. Desperately she tried to climb back into Charlie's arms again.

"No! No!" she cried as he held her back.

"It's okay now." Don said and patted her shoulder. "It can't hurt you anymore. We just want to make sure that you're all right." He tilted his head to meet her eyes. "Okay?"

She sniffed and rubbed her hands over her eyes. "kay."

While Charlie fished a cloth from the bag so that she could blow her nose, Don checked her over for any signs of a snake bite. He looked up a few minutes later and met Charlie's worried gaze over the little girls head.

"Not a scratch." he said with a relieved smile. "Come here sweetheart." He enveloped her in his arms and found himself comforted when she hugged his neck. Don stroked her hair soothingly and noted with relief that she was calming down.

"Thank goodness." Charlie turned his head and glanced at the unmoving body of the snake. "I was afraid that I was too late."

Don glanced at the snake and something Charlie had said earlier suddenly clicked in his mind and he frantically grabbed his brother's forearm causing Charlie to look back at him in surprise.

"You pushed her out of the way." Don said his mind racing as he set the little girl on the blanket and moved closer to his brother. Charlie's face looked pale, even with the sunburn and with a growing fear Don began to check him over. "Did it strike you? Stand up…let me take a look."

Slightly bewildered at his brother's sudden anxiety, Charlie let Don pull him to his feet.

"No…ah…I'm sure it didn't. I mean, I would know if I'd been bitten and I didn't feel anything." He said with a slight tremor in his voice; Don's behavior was becoming contagious.

"Just…just stand still and let me check you over." Don said breathlessly as he carefully looked him over for bite marks. He checked his arms, chest and back and was just beginning to relax until he reached Charlie's left ankle. Just above the heel of Charlie's shoe, Don noticed two twin tears in the hem of his jeans along with twin scrape marks running down the heel of his sneaker.

Impatiently Charlie twisted around to complain but his voice caught in his throat at the expression on his brother's face. "Don?" he asked shakily. He couldn't have been bitten, he would have felt it… but then why was Don looking like that?

"Don't move Charlie." Don whispered breathlessly.

With trembling hands Don slowly raised his brothers pant leg …and gasped in relief at the unmarked skin he found underneath. He sat back and rubbed a hand across his face before glancing up at his brother.

"Wow Chuck." Don whistled between his teeth. "You are so lucky."

Charlie's eyes widened and he sank to the ground, twisting around so that he could see what his brother was talking about.

"The snake must have pulled back when I threw the sack over its head." He said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"God Charlie, I thought…." Don swallowed, unable to finish his sentence. He turned and glanced at the seemingly lifeless snake and as his fear began to subside it was replaced with anger; anger at his brother for drawing the snake's attention. His head swiveled back around, this time with an angry glare in his eyes.

"What in the hell did you think that you were doing? You almost got yourself killed!"

Don watched as Charlie's expression changed from surprise to disbelief and then finally anger.

"I almost got myself killed! " He retorted angrily. "What were you doing? If I hadn't tossed that sack over its head it would have bitten you for sure, because there is no way that you could have hit it before it struck you." Charlie finished heatedly and rose to his feet.

Still angry, Don followed. "That was different."

"No Don." Charlie said, eyes flashing angrily. "There is no difference. Just because you are older it doesn't mean that it's your responsibility to take all of the risks." He could see Samantha sitting on the blanket watching them so he side stepped his brother with the intention of joining her when a sudden thought stopped him in his tracks. He turned back to face Don and the anger in his eyes was suddenly replaced by fear.

"And by the way, how do you know it didn't bite you?"

It was Don's turn to gape in surprise. "I think I would know if it bit me Charlie." he retorted sarcastically.

"Hold still while I check you over." Charlie said gruffly as he looked him over for bite marks.

"This is ridiculous." Don huffed.

Charlie stood up a few minutes later. "Well, it looks like you are okay."

"Of course I'm okay." Don retorted angrily.

Charlie was just about to respond when he became aware of Samantha crying and clinging to his leg. He looked down in surprise, his argument forgotten as his concern for her took over. Don too, was now focused on the little girl.

The young mathematician bent down and scooped Sammy up in his arms and gently rocked her.

"I'm sorry. " He said guiltily, glancing at his brother over the little girl's head. "Our argument frightened you didn't it?"

She hid her face in his chest and nodded her head. "Wanna go home."

Don's anger faded and he moved closer feeling guilty. He patted her gently on the back and apologized. "I'm sorry too Sammy and I think you're right. I want to go home too and it's high time for us to get moving again."

The agent looked around nervously and checked to make sure that the snake was still motionless. He bent down and picked up his pole and started jabbing at their things before picking them up. Charlie picked up his stick as well and carried Sammy as he made his way back to the blanket. He checked the area carefully before he set her down and picked up the blanket and with a quick shake he stuffed it back into the bag.

Don came over and looped the bag over his shoulders while Charlie knelt down so that Sammy could climb up on his back. He stood up and with a nod at his brother they started out again. With a new found energy born out of fear, the brothers stumbled across the hot sand but this time they used their poles to check any area along their path that might hide any unwanted surprises.

The male hawk had joined the female in the tree and two sets of dark beady eyes followed their movements closely as they left the clearing

Twenty minutes into their walk, Don turned around and shuddered. A kettle of vultures was already circling over the small clearing. He swallowed hard and hurried to catch up with Charlie, trying to forget how close they had come to dying; it could easily have been one of them laying motionless back there in the sand.

Despite what Charlie had said, he still believed that luck had saved the day….and that they had probably used up all of their luck in that small clearing behind them.

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Colby set the coffee cup on the table next to his partner and waited for him to look up. David's earlier meeting with the girl's parents had left him despondent and he currently appeared lost in thought as he stared at the laptop in front of him.

"You look like you could use this." he said after a moment.

David looked up, unshed tears glistening in the corners of his eyes "Yeah, thanks." He rubbed his forehead and sighed. "I can't say that was the easiest thing I've ever done. I just wish that I had been able to give them a little hope."

"I know. " Colby sighed in agreement and then changed the subject. "Any news from Miller?"

"No, but they have a lot of farms to check out. It's possible that we still might get lucky but I think there is somewhere else that we should be looking."

Colby glanced sideways at his partner as he sat down in his chair and began to search through the evidence. "What have you got in mind?"

"I think we need to consider a few farms outside of L.A. Don's last phone transmission went through a cell tower in Barstow. "

"Yeah. " Colby looked puzzled. "We already know that David. What's your point? "

"My point is this. A few minutes ago I spoke with Jack Thompson, one of the leaders of the agricultural society. He says there are a number of onion farms in San Bernardino County and that three of them are near Victorville which is not far from Barstow." He held up three fingers. "We have Don's call coming in from Barstow, three onion farms near that area and sand in the wheel wells of Don's car. That's three hits and you know what Charlie says about random coincidences."

Colby nodded his head thoughtfully. "They probably aren't random. "

"Right. Anyway, it's going to be dark in a few hours and most of those workers will be back in the camps. Take Nikki with you and head up to Victorville." He met Colby's eye. "Check in with the sheriff and have him take you to all of the camps where the workers are currently harvesting the onion plants. We might get lucky and find someone there that knows our mystery man."

"You got it. " Colby said, rising suddenly to his feet. He grabbed his jacket and a copy of the sketch and headed for the door. "I need to do something physical anyway." he said over his shoulder.

"Hey Colb." David called. "Keep me posted."

With a nod of his head Colby left the room in search of Nikki. He found her and Liz trying to match the tire prints taken from the Angeles Crest area where they had found Don's SUV.

"Let's go Betancourt. We've got a road trip."

"Where are we going?" Nikki asked as she opened her desk drawer and pulled out her gun. She quickly snapped it on her belt and put on her jacket.

"Victorville."

Liz looked up. "What's up?"

"David wants us to show the sketch to the migrant workers on three farms out there. Since Don and Charlie appeared to be headed in that direction, he thinks there might be a chance that one of the workers could recognize our suspect. "

"Makes sense." Liz agreed. "Drive safely." She added a few minutes later when the two agents headed for the elevator.

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The afternoon sun would have been hot but the gentle breeze swirling off of the water made the temperature extremely pleasant. The ocean had always been a haven for Walt and as his boat rocked gently in the Marina, he stretched his legs out in front of him in an effort to get more comfortable.

A few minutes later however, he sighed and shifted around in his chair; even in his place of sanctuary peace was eluding him. He was still upset because he had failed in his attempt to help rescue the little girl yesterday and now he feared that it was too late for the FBI to save her.

He should have been excited about his retirement, not despondent. He had won a number of awards during his tour of duty but even those couldn't help him accept his failures.

Walt glanced around his deck. The yacht was finished now; it had taken him several years but he had restored the boat himself. The only thing that he had left to do was to give the yacht a name and that was proving to be the hardest task of all.

The retired policeman took a sip of his beer and flipped open the newspaper lying on top of the table. A special edition of the LA Times had hit the streets and he had found it lying on the floor of the yacht. He was surprised that he had spotted it so quickly; his news paper delivery boy seemed to delight in tossing it in a different spot every time.

"Oh, no." He mumbled and sat up straighter when he saw the headlines. Photographs of Don and Charlie Eppes were on the front page and his scowled deepened as he read the article. The agent and his brother were missing and beneath their pictures there was a photograph of the kidnapped girl, Samantha Wilkins. According to the article, however, no connection had been found to link their disappearance with hers.

"Doesn't have to be connected." Walt mused aloud and took another sip of his beer. There could be any number of reasons for their disappearance. They could have had an accident or maybe someone had a grudge against the agent.

He stared at the pictures and that feeling came over him again. That same feeling that he had experienced the first time that he had seen the brothers together; he knew that he had met them before but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't remember the details. Suddenly a thought occurred to him and he pushed away from the deck table and hurried down the steps to his cabin.

"It's got to be here somewhere." He muttered as he shifted around the items in the closet. Frustrated, he sat back on his heels and tried to remember where he had put it. He was just about to give up when he spied the corner of the carton that he was looking for. "Ah, ha. " He mumbled triumphantly, tossing aside a towel that had been lying on top of the box.

Walt carried the small box back up to the deck and set it on the table. The retired officer took another sip of his beer and started sorting through the papers in the box. It contained old newspaper clippings that he had collected over the years. The answer that he was looking for was in one of these clippings, he was sure of it, and he was determined to find it, no matter how long it took him.

TBC

A/N: I actually came up with two scenarios for Don and Charlie to resolve the snake issue and since I liked them both I thought that I would give you a chance to let me know which one you liked the best. Your feedback will determine which one I leave in the story. Thanks for your help.

Scenario 2:

Don grasped the pole with both hands and rose quickly to his knees. He held it like he was holding a baseball bat, easily falling back into his old stance and gripping it the way he used to when he played for the Stockton Rangers. For just a moment he had a clear view of the viper as it streaked toward him and then Charlie was moving and it was turning toward him.

"Charlie!" He shouted desperately. "Move!"

The snake suddenly disappeared and the sack that Charlie had been holding seemed to dance momentarily in mid-air, but only for a split second, and then the bag slid sideways to reveal a dazed and even angrier rattler. But Charlie's diversion had given Don enough time to get to his feet and deliver a mighty blow to the serpent before it had another chance to attack. The pole connected with its head and a resounding crack resonated around the small clearing. The blow sent the reptile flying skywards and moments later it landed with a loud thud twenty feet from where they were standing. When the dust finally cleared the snake lay motionless in a tangled heap beneath the hot sun.

Don panted from the exertion of the swing and kept his eyes on the unmoving serpent, afraid to look away in case it began to move again. He didn't know if he had killed it or just knocked it out, but he wasn't taking any chances. His heart was beating so loudly in his ears that it took him a moment to register the little girl's screams and only then did he turn away as a sudden fearful thought occurred to him. "_Oh, God, did it have time to bite her…or Charlie?" _

(The rest of this scene is the same as the first scenario.)


	13. Chapter 13

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I'd like to say a special "thank-you" to everyone who took the time to review. The "hawk" scenario was my personal favorite for Chapter 12 and I am very pleased that so many of you liked it too. It was actually the first one that I wrote.

Chapter 13:

Juan shifted his weight from one foot to the other as he impatiently waited in line at the check out counter of the local grocery store. He was hoping to keep a low profile and not give anyone a reason to remember him but he was barely containing his bad temper as the shopper in front of him finished unloading her cart.

The teenage boy at the cash register fueled his temper even more by carrying on a conversation with another boy as he rang up his purchases. Juan caught snatches of their conversation that seemed to cover a variety of topics ranging from an important soccer game to the latest hip hop music.

He really didn't have time for this, he had to get back to the onion fields and look for that kid and those two damn cabrones. The short search that he had anticipated was turning into a very long and arduous one; at first their tracks had been easy to follow but then they seemed to disappear after they left the onion rows and headed into the fava bean section. The Mexican had left Rico to guard the area where their search had ended and watch for any movements within the field while he made a store run for more water and food.

Juan glanced impatiently at his watch and silently cursed the elderly white woman in front of him. It was already two o'clock in the afternoon and he still hadn't located the Eppes brothers or the little girl.

To hell with patience, he finally decided, and leaned forward putting forth his most engaging smile.

"Excuse me lady, but I only have a few things." he said pointedly, letting his eyes drift down to his shopping cart. "Would you mind if I went in front of you. I'm sort of in a hurry."

The elderly woman turned and her faded green eyes met his brown ones. "I'm sorry son." she said slowly. "But I already have my items on the counter." She flashed him a smile of her own. "I won't be much longer." She turned away as the boy at the register began to scan her purchases.

The old woman didn't see the menacing scowl take the place of the smile or how the young man's brown eyes seemed to grow darker at her reply.

Juan forced himself to remain calm but inwardly he was seething. He loaded his items on the counter behind hers and looked away, pretending to gaze at the rack of magazines and newspapers next to the counter.

"Damn old gabachoA!" he muttered under his breath but abruptly forgot about her as he read the headlines on the papers in the rack. The very people that he was trying to find were staring up at him from the front page.

"Anything else sir?" The boy at the register asked politely.

Juan was so engrossed in the article that he didn't look up until the kid repeated the question. "Do you want to add the newspaper to your purchases sir?"

He glanced up in surprise as the boy was putting his last item in a bag. "Oh...ah…yes. I'll take this too." He handed him the newspaper and hurriedly removed the money from his wallet.

"Thank you for shopping with us." The cashier politely called out as Juan grabbed his shopping bags and hurried for the door.

He tossed the groceries on the seat as he clamored in and immediately started the car but he didn't pull out right away. He grabbed the newspaper and finished reading the article first. A slow smile spread across his face as he put down the paper and put the truck into gear and as he pulled out of the parking lot his mood brightened considerably.

Juan's plan had worked; the FBI was searching the mountains for their missing people, miles and miles away from their real location. He still had time to find them, finish them off and head for Mexico.

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David leaned over Larry's shoulder and studied the data on the laptop.

"Did you guys find anything yet?" he asked hopefully.

"Charlie compiled a lot of data and without going through all of it we won't be able to come to the same conclusions that he did. " Larry retorted, raising his arms above his head in frustration as if to emphasis the enormous amount of information that they had to process. "Oh, my." he added. "This is going to take us a while to figure out."

The agents eyebrows rose and he glanced at Amita for confirmation.

"Larry's right, we need a starting point if we're going to figure out what Charlie found in the data stream."

"But you have all of information that he had?"

"Yes, this is true, but without his laptop we are going to have to sort through all of it, just like he did, and it took him hours to get to reach a solution." She looked up at him with eyes filled with unshed tears. "They may not have hours David….we really need his laptop."

David frowned and glanced at his watch. "You know the forensics dept really should have finished with it by now." He fished his cell phone out of his pocket. "I told them to have it up it here ASAP." He muttered as he dialed and then held the phone up to his ear.

"This is Agent Sinclair. I want to talk to the technician that is examining Dr. Eppes's laptop." He tapped his finger impatiently on the table. "What the hell is taking you so long? We need that laptop up here." he listened for a moment. "Trace elements, what kind of elements. Uh, huh. You've got an hour and then I'm coming down to get it myself. That laptop may hold the key to where our people are and I don't know about you, but I would like to find them alive! Understand? Good." he closed his phone and shoved it back into his pocket.

"What kind of trace elements?" Liz asked as she joined him.

He shrugged. "I don't know…some kind of dust and fiber. They're still trying to identify it. In the meantime do you have anything?"

Liz spoke as she led the way to her computer. "A partial boot print was found at the murder scenes of Allison Sanders and Janet Martin and there was an identical one found near Don's SUV."

"The fingerprints already link the cases." David commented. "This will give us more evidence to nail the coffin shut on that son of a bitch." He sat down on the edge of the table. "How about the tire tracks?"

"The set of tire tracks found near Don's car match the tread of a tire that was only manufactured for a few years. It was a Titan Radial ST 155/80 R13 BSW. It's an all season 4 x 4 tire, all terrain, off road, and it is used primarily on the larger pick up trucks like the Ford F-150, the Dodge Ram and the Nissan Titan. The tire was discontinued after 2003." Liz said as she tapped at a few keys. "A better tire came out the next year and all of the newer trucks were switched over to the new tire."

Liz sighed heavily and leaned back in her chair. She rubbed her temples then tilted her head and looked up at David. "There are over 300 vehicles registered in LA and San Bernardino counties that use that tire and two hundred of the registered owners are Latino."

David shrugged out of his jacket and sat down, powering up the laptop next to her.

"Then I guess we had better get started." he muttered as he began to tap at the keys.

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Don and Charlie felt like they had been walking for hours but in reality they had barely managed to travel more than a couple of miles from the clearing. They had pushed hard at first, fueled on by the adrenaline rush from their close encounter with the rattler but as that energy began to wear off their steps began to falter.

Fatigue, extreme heat and the terrain was taking its toll; stops were becoming more and more frequent and were lasting longer. Wary of what could be hiding in the underbrush, they would go out of their way to walk around heavily vegetated areas. In the places where the brothers couldn't avoid the underbrush they would walk at an even slower pace because they would use their poles to make certain the path ahead was clear. This practice upset several of the deserts inhabitants and more than once a quail or a road runner would dart out from the underbrush and rush off in another direction.

Despite the slow pace Don and Charlie were getting closer to the foothills but not as quickly as they had hoped. Miles still separated them from their goal but they had no other choice but to rest again. Both brothers were beginning to experience the early stages of heat exhaustion and knew they had to find a place to rest that could provide them with some sort of shade from the blistering sun. Lightheaded from dehydration they both stubbornly continued onward until they stumbled upon a small knoll with a few scattered trees and piles of boulders and rocks scattered all around it.

Don led the way to a large boulder that offered a little shade on one side of it and bent down so that Charlie could remove a sleeping Sammy from his back. He immediately sat down and pushed himself backwards until his back was flush against the large rock.

Sammy didn't wake up as Charlie set her against the rock between them. He reached over and removed her hat and she rolled sideways, laying her head up against his side.

Sweating profusely they collapsed in silence against the rock, panting from the exertion and the extreme heat. For a few minutes only their heavy and rapid breathing joined the sound of the dry wind as it swirled around the rocks. Finally, Don broke the silence.

"I hate…this…godforsaken…place. " He rasped out bitterly.

The agent glanced sideways at his brother when Charlie didn't make any comment and paused to study his appearance. Charlie's eyes were closed and his head was resting back against the rock. Sweat had plastered his curls to the side of his face and the sunburn on his face and arms had darkened. His tee shirt was soaked with sweat and he was using his hat as a fan in an effort to try and cool both himself and the little girl.

"Does…that…help any?" Don asked, removing his own hat and mimicking his brother.

"A…little." Charlie replied in a barely audible voice.

Don scrubbed a hand through his sweat soaked hair and pushed it back from his face; this was the first time that he had regretted letting his hair grow longer. He put his hat down and pulled a half empty bottle of water out of the bag and then handed one to his brother. Don took a small sip of water and rolled it around in his mouth before swallowing it and ran his tongue over his dry lips to try and moisten them but winced at the dry cracks he felt there. After a time his breathing became normal again and his body began to cool a little.

The agent glanced at his brother, relieved to see that he too, appeared to be breathing normally once again.

"Charlie, I've got an idea that might help us get Sammy home." He spoke quietly, watching as his brother's head swiveled toward him. He faltered momentarily because he knew that Charlie wasn't going to like his plan. "_It's a long shot_." he told himself "_but it might work_." He took a deep breath and plunged ahead.

"You take Samantha and keep going toward the foothills and I'll backtrack and lead those guys in another direction." He waited silently for his brother's response and watched Charlie's eyes widen in disbelief.

"That's the most illogical thing that I have ever heard you say." Charlie commented dryly, staring at him like he had lost his mind. "The sun must really be getting to you."

"It's the only way to get Sammy safely away from them." Don explained, too tired to rise to the comment.

"We don't even know if they are coming after us. Maybe they headed for the border."

"I saw the Mexican's eyes Charlie and I've seen that look before. There is no way that he is going to give up….he will not stop until he finds us." Don retorted heatedly.

"Okay. Fine. They're coming after us." Charlie begrudgingly agreed. "In that case Sammy has a better chance of survival with you than she does with me. If one of us is going to be a decoy, then it should be me." Charlie held his brother's gaze and knew what Don's answer was going to be before he even uttered a word.

"That's not an option Charlie." Don growled impatiently.

"Then we'll just have to think of something else." Charlie remarked as he closed his eyes once again.

"Fine!" Don retorted irritably. "If you don't like my idea, then you come up with something." He followed his brother's example and closed his own eyes against the glaring sun.

Samantha shifted her position and moved from Charlie's side to Don's, and squeezed her small body underneath his arm to use his stomach for a pillow. He opened one eye and lifted his arm to give her some room and then gently patted her on the back as she squirmed around trying to get more comfortable. Once she had settled down, Don began to gently stroke her hair to comfort her. The little girl snuggled closer and finally fell asleep again.

Don's heart felt like it was stuck in his throat. He wanted so desperately to get Samantha safely home and as his eyes drifted sideways and settled on his brother's exhausted figure he realized that it wasn't just the little girl that he was worried about. As if reading his thoughts Charlie spoke up suddenly.

"David will be sending a helicopter over here to search this area, right?"

"They don't even know where we are Charlie." Don responded dispiritedly. "David probably has the team searching the area where they found the car; they have no evidence to lead them here."

"That's not true." Charlie scoffed.

Don looked over in surprise. "Of course it's true. What are you talking about?"

"I assume that David will call Amita and Larry in to check my laptop and when they discover our real destination then the helicopters will arrive." Charlie said with confidence.

"If they find the car." Don grumbled quietly.

"Of course they will find it and we can leave them a sign. That way when David and Colby fly over this area, they will know that we were here."

Don lifted his head and stared at his brother. "You mean like a bonfire or something? We'd be advertising our position to the bad guys Charlie." He shook his head. "I know the sun has affected you now."

"Ha, ha brother. I didn't say anything about a bonfire." He turned sideways so he was facing Don. "We could spell out a message with rocks before we go on. I noticed a large pile of them just below this knoll."

"There is only one problem with that plan Charlie. If the Mexicans get here first, I'm pretty sure that they won't leave the word "help" spelled out in rocks for the FBI to find."

Charlie sighed and closed his eyes again but they popped open almost immediately as he thought of something and he turned excitedly toward his brother. "Hey Don. Do you think that those guys are really smart?"

"I only saw them briefly Charlie and only heard them talking for a few minutes but I'm pretty sure that at least one of them can spell "help."

Charlie rolled his eyes at him. "There you go making another assumption. I didn't say anything about spelling out the word 'help."

Don opened his mouth to comment but Charlie continued on with his explanation before he had chance to get a word out. "It's my fault, I didn't clarify my question. What I meant to ask was do you think that they have any advanced mathematical skills?"

Don's eyebrows knitted closer together. "I think the sun has cooked your brain brother. Where are you going with this?"

Charlie eased himself back against the rock and shifted around to get more comfortable. "Do you think that they would recognize the symbol for Pi?"

Don snorted. "No. But how could that be a message for help?" Suddenly Don's eyes widened and he sat up straighter." Wait, I see where you're going with this. "

A slow grin began to spread across his face as he continued. "David and Colby will lead the search and when they see the symbol, they'll know that you put it there. Because who else would use a math symbol as a sign for help…. but you?"

Charlie chuckled. "Right."

"That just might work Charlie." Don said thoughtfully. "We can put an arrow in front of it so that they'll know we are headed for the foothills."

"Exactly." Charlie replied with a grin and pulled himself to his feet. He bent over to retrieve the large bag and groaned when he straightened back up again, rubbing at his lower back.

"Man, I thought that I was in better shape than this." He complained as he grabbed the small bag and stuffed Sammy's hat inside.

"I'll get started on it right away." He added with a new found energy and without another word disappeared around the rock.

Don carefully picked up Samantha and carried her over to the base of the knoll where Charlie had dropped the bags. His brother was studying the desert floor and looked around when Don joined him. He rushed over and pulled the blanket from the bag and found a small shady area where he could spread it out so that Don could lay the sleeping child down.

"We have to make this fast Charlie. Once they've figured out where we've gone, it won't take them very long to catch up to us. It'll only take them a few hours to cover this ground by vehicle."

"I know." His brother mumbled as he scanned the rocks. "This shouldn't take us very long to do." Suddenly, he pointed to an area that was almost completely free of undergrowth.

"Over there." he said excitedly.

"It looks good." Don agreed. "Listen, we both can't wander too far from Sammy so I'll stay close to her and start piling up the rocks at the edge of your starting point."

"Good." Charlie said as he bent down to pick up his pole. "I need to draw the outline first anyway."

He hurried forward and started drawing an outline for the Pi symbol. It had to be big enough to be spotted from the air but too large to read from ground level just in case one of the Mexicans knew a lot about mathematics. As he drew the outline he also pulled up any vegetation that would interfere with the design. After a half an hour he had finished and staggered back to the rocks to get out of the sun.

Don knelt down next to him and offered him a water bottle. "Take a few minutes and cool off and I'll start placing the rocks on your outline."

Charlie nodded tiredly and took a drink of water then closed his eyes against a bout of dizziness.

His breathing finally began to slow back to a more normal rate and he actually felt a little cooler. When he opened his eyes again he sighed with relief that the dizziness had passed and after twenty minutes he was feeling strong enough help place the rocks.

Don staggered in this time and plopped down beside of him. He wiped his forehead on his sleeve before dropping his head back against the rock and closing his eyes.

"We need to do this in twenty minute intervals." Charlie said as he handed the water bottle to his brother.

Don shook his head in agreement and watched as Charlie took up the task. They took turns thereafter and in another forty minutes they were almost finished. That was when Sammy woke up and wanted to know what they were doing.

Don started to explain that they were leaving a message that said "help" so that if a plane went over someone would see it. At the same time Charlie's explanation naturally included the word Pi.

They shared a look of surprise when they realized that the only word that Samantha had actually heard was "pie."

Sammy's bright blue eyes were shining with excitement. "I helped Mommy make a pie…it was an apple pie …..and it was good too."

Don laughed out loud despite their serious situation and knelt down beside of her. "I bet it tasted real good too but Sammy this is a different kind of Pi. You can't eat this kind of Pi sweetie."

Charlie pulled her hat from the bag and placed it on her head before taking her hand. "You can help us but you have to stay right beside of us. Okay?"

She nodded her head excitedly and stayed with Don as he stacked up more rocks for them to use. He set aside a pile of small stones that Sammy would be able to lift and she eagerly put them where Charlie told her too. When her stones were used up she looked around for more. Spying a small one leaning up against a larger one, she bent down and grabbed it with both hands. Suddenly she screamed and dropped the rock. Don was by her side in a second and quickly scooped her up. She hugged his neck and hid her face in his chest.

Concerned, Charlie rushed over to them. "What's the matter….is she hurt?"

"I don't know." Don replied as he rubbed circles on her back to try and soothe her.

"Monstew." Sammy mumbled.

Charlie's eyebrows rose. "Did she say monster?"

"Sammy, show me the monster." Don encouraged her.

The little girl lifted her head and pointed to the rock that she had picked up. Charlie nudged it with his pole and moved it around until he found Sammy's monster. He laughed and motioned for Don to bring the little girl over.

A night lizard had taken refuge beneath the rock that Sammy had picked up. The dark brown lizard was two inches long with a tail roughly the same length and was currently looking for a way to escape from them.

"Sammy it's just a little lizard." Don said laughingly. "It won't hurt you."

At Dons laughter Sammy raised her head and looked closer at the lizard. She giggled and squirmed out of Don's arms. Sammy walked over to stand beside of Charlie and bent over, placing her hands on her knees as she perused the lizard.

"Just a lizawd." She said mimicking Don's tone of voice.

Charlie laughed and took her hand. "Come on, we have to finish our work."

After that they worked for another ten minutes and then finally Charlie put the last rock in place and they stepped back to the edge of the knoll to look it over.

"Not bad Chuck." Don said and shared a grin with his brother. "Not bad at all."

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Alan stared out of the break room window at the streets below. He rested his forehead against the window and closed his eyes. Like a video playing across a screen, the vision of the last time that he was with his sons played across his mind. He could see them both so clearly; it was almost like he could reach out and touch them.

Someone else entered the room and startled him and he reluctantly opened his eyes. The vision faded and with a sigh he grabbed his coffee cup and shuffled back to the conference room.

He and Robin had finished the work that David had given them and she had left to make a phone call, promising to hurry back as soon as she was finished. David had said that he could stay at the office as long as he wanted too and Alan found that it was easier to stay there than go home to an empty house.

Alan's shoulders slumped dejectedly as he entered the room where David, Liz, Amita and Larry were working. He set his coffee cup down at an empty table and then stepped over to David's side.

"Can I get you guys some coffee?"

David looked up at him and said quietly. "You don't have to do that Alan."

"I know…I know." Alan replied anxiously. "I just thought I could help out a little, that's all."

Liz shared a quick glance with David and then pulled the pencil out of her mouth. "I'll take a refill." She said holding out her cup. "Thanks Alan."

"None for me thanks. " David answered quietly.

"Anyone else?" Alan asked as he glanced at Amita and Larry. A negative shake of their heads was the only response from the professors so he turned and shuffled out the door.

"_He needs to go home." _David thought as he watched Alan leave the room. His cell phone rang and he absently picked it up.

"Sinclair. Really?" he picked up a pencil and wrote a few notes in his notebook. "Okay, thanks." He closed his phone and was silent for a few minutes while he continued to write.

"What have you got?" Liz finally asked.

"A state trooper near Victorville said he saw a man with a tattoo like our suspect." He opened ups his cell phone again and hit the speed dial button. "I don't need Charlie to see the pattern that's forming now."

Liz could hear Colby as he answered the phone. "Granger."

"Hey Colb. Listen I have something else for you to do. When you get to Victorville go to the State Patrol's office first. Ask for Trooper Samuel Henderson; he may have seen our suspect last night. Right. Let me know what you find out. Okay. Bye."

"Victorville?" A curious female voice asked.

David looked up to see Alan and Robin standing at the end of the table. He blinked and rubbed at his eyes. How did he miss seeing them come into the room?

"Yeah, it looks like our kidnapper might be in that area. A state trooper says he saw a man with a tattoo like the one that our suspect has on his arm. Nikki and Colby are going to check it out."

"Any luck with the local tattoo salons?" Alan asked as he handed Liz her coffee cup.

David rubbed the top of his head. "There are a lot of tattoo parlors Alan; it's going to take a while."

Dispiritedly, Alan stuffed his hands deep within the pockets of his jeans "Right." he said softly and looked away with a lost look in his eyes.

Robin put her arm through Alan's. "I think you and I should go wait in the break room and give them some room to work."

Reluctantly, Alan let her lead him out of the room and soon found himself once again staring out of the glass window in the break room.

TBC

Translations:

cabrones = bastards

gabacho/a = an insulting term for a white person.


	14. Chapter 14

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Sit back, grab your coffee or tea cup and get comfortable….this is a long one.

I hope that you enjoy it and will take the time to send me a review.

Chapter 14:

David entered the conference room with Charlie's laptop carefully cradled in his arms. True to his word, he had gone down to the lab to retrieve it himself one minute after the deadline had passed. Larry looked up as he approached the desk and his eyes lit up when he spied his friend's computer.

"It's about time." The anxious professor muttered and eagerly took the laptop from the agent.

Sinclair glanced around the conference room as he relinquished the precious article.

"Where's Amita?"

"She went to Charlie's office." Larry responded absently, already becoming immersed in powering up the laptop. "She wanted to see if he left anything there that might help us determine their location. Alan and Robin went with her."

"Well, I hope they find something that we can use." David muttered under his breath as he turned and wandered over to stand behind Liz. She was busy scanning through records, this time it was the DMV files.

"How about you Liz? Any luck yet?"

She leaned back in her chair and rubbed the back of her neck. "I'm comparing our sketch to the drivers license photos of the registered owners of the trucks, but so far I haven't found any matches."

"We don't even know if he owns the truck." David said tiredly. "For all we know, our suspect could have stolen that one too."

"I've already started checking on that angle but so far none of these trucks have been reported missing. "

"I hope Colby and Nikki have better luck than we are having." David said, glancing at his watch.

"Yeah." Liz agreed as she tapped at the keys. "We need something to turn this case around."

She didn't have to add "_before its too late" _the unspoken sentiment seemed to float in the air around them like it was a living entity. Both agents were painfully aware that more than twenty-four hours had now elapsed since their friends had left the federal building and now night was falling, making the search for them even more difficult.

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Colby cruised along Interstate 15 and casually glanced out of the window at the surrounding desert. The digital read out on the dashboard was still showing the outside temperature at 99 degrees and even though the sun was on its way down it didn't seem to be cooling things off.

He swallowed against the lump growing in his throat. If Don and Charlie were somewhere out there on the Mojave their chances of survival were extremely low.

"You don't think they're out there somewhere, do you?" Nikki asked worriedly, as if reading his thoughts.

He shrugged and glanced over. "No way to know."

They passed the exit for Hesperia and twenty minutes later merged with the traffic leaving the highway for Victorville.

"Did you get the address for the CHIPs Station?" he asked as he left the interstate.

"Yeah. Hold on, let me run it through the GPS." She punched a few keys and a few seconds later they had the directions to the station.

"How close is it to the Sheriff's office?"

She looked up with a grin. "You're not going to believe this but its right next door."

"Now that makes it easy" Colby chuckled dryly.

"They're both located at the Victorville Regional Station, it's located on the outskirts of town. At the bottom of the ramp turn west, drive straight for six miles and then turn east onto Sagebrush Avenue. The station should be roughly a half mile from the turn off."

The road ran parallel to the Mojave River for a few miles but they gave little thought to its scenic beauty as their concern for Don and Charlie's safety seemed to grow with each passing mile. Colby flicked on his turn signal and veered to the right, leaving the river behind them as they hit the outlying district of the city. He turned onto Sagebrush Avenue then rounded a turn and a large municipal park came into view.

"This place is bigger than I expected it to be." He muttered as he drove slowly around the buildings looking for the highway patrol station.

"Over there, to the right." Nikki pointed out.

The California Highway Patrol building was a three story structure connected to a large garage. There were many patrol cars and motorcycles' dotting the parking lot in front of the building but Colby was able to find an empty parking spot not far from the main entrance.

Nikki and Colby exited the vehicle almost simultaneously and more than one diligent officer observed them as they walked into the building. They headed straight for the main desk and waited while the officer on duty completed a phone call. As soon as his call was finished the officer stood up to greet them.

"How can I help you?"

Colby presented his ID and introduced himself and his partner.

The Sergeant behind the desk studied their badges closely before responding. "What brings the FBI to our little town?"

"We're looking for Trooper Samuel Henderson." Nikki answered.

The Sergeant clicked a few keys on his computer before responding. "Sam's out in the field, he left an hour ago on a call to Apple Valley. I'm not sure when he'll be back." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "But if this is an emergency I can call him back."

"It is an emergency Sergeant, there are lives at stake." Colby said solemnly. "I'd appreciate it if you could get him back here."

Without another word the officer picked up his phone and contacted the dispatch operator and relayed the message to the trooper. He hung up the phone after a few minutes and turned to the agents.

"We're sending out a replacement team but it will probably be about forty-five minutes to an hour before he can make it back here."

"Very well." Colby said as he pulled a card and a pen from his pocket. "Have him call me as soon as he gets here." The agent scribbled a phone number on the card and handed it to the Sergeant. "My cell number is on the card."

"Where can he find you?"

"Right now we're headed over to the Sheriff's office but we'll be on the move after that. Just tell him to call me when he gets in. Thanks for your help Sergeant." He added as he and Nikki turned and walked away.

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"Damn it!" Charlie cried out in agony as he suddenly began to limp around in a circle. He sat down heavily on the desert floor and began to massage the calf of his right leg.

Don stopped, swaying slightly with the little girl's weight, before he knelt down and let her climb off of his back. "What's the matter?"

Charlie glanced up, fatigue and pain etched into the features of his face.

"Muscle cramp." he mumbled.

Don nodded his head thoughtfully, rubbing at his own shoulder as he tried to relieve the ache and soreness that had developed there from carrying Sammy. The muscle cramp could be a symptom of heat exhaustion or it could have developed from their long trek.

"Do you think that you can make it to the foothills?" He asked with a nod toward the mountains.

They were close to it now and the mountain loomed up in front of them like a welcome beacon. Another thirty minute walk would bring them to the base of the mountain but in another hour night would also be upon them forcing their climb over the ridge to wait until the morning light.

"Yeah. Just give me a minute."

Don fished a bottle of water from the pack and tossed it to him and then handed one to Sammy who had sat down quietly next to Charlie. She had talked for a little while after they had left the rocks but it seemed that the heat had finally gotten to her as well and she just quietly accepted the bottle that he gave her.

Charlie placed a hand on her arm pulling the bottle away from her mouth when she started to gulp the water down.

"Remember; just take small sips at a time. If you drink it too fast it will make you sick." He waited until she nodded her head before he let go.

"How's the leg?"

Charlie looked up. "Better now." He glanced at the foothills and then at the darkening sky before meeting his brother's eyes. "It shouldn't take us more than a half hour to get there but that ridge is a lot higher than it looked from a distance. We'll never get over it in the dark."

Don took a sip of water, relishing the liquid and swirling it around in his mouth before swallowing. "I know, but we might find a better place to make camp, instead of out here in the open."

"That sounds like a good idea to me." Charlie agreed as he screwed the lid back on his water bottle. "All finished?" he asked looking down at the little girl

She shook her head and handed him her bottle. Sammy's hand closed around Charlie's forearm and she pulled herself up as he was handing the bottles back to Don.

"I wanna walk too." Sammy said, looking from Charlie to Don.

Both men turned to study the path to the mountains which appeared fairly clear of vegetation.

"Alright you can walk for a while but you have to stay between us." Don said, holding her gaze until he was sure that she understood.

"Okay. " Sammy eagerly agreed.

Don quickly stuffed the bottles back in the bag and stood up but he bent over almost immediately to offer a hand to his brother.

"Ready?"

"Ready." Charlie grunted as Don pulled him to his feet. He swayed slightly on one leg until he was able to stand on his own.

"Come here Sammy." Don said, motioning for the little girl to stand between them and held her hand as they slowly moved forward.

"It'll be a relief to stop for the night." Charlie remarked, limping along painfully.

"Yeah, it will." Don agreed with a worried glance at his brother. He fervently hoped that Charlie was right, that it was only had a muscle cramp and that it wasn't a sign of something more serious.

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Juan was beyond furious; he was livid with rage that the two men had been able to elude him for so long. There was only an hour of sunlight left and they had found no further sign of the men or the little girl.

A thorough search of the onion rows on both sides of the road all the way to the turn onto the farm road had not even yielded a single clue to their whereabouts. Still, the fact that the police had not shown up at the farm led him to believe that their captives had not made contact with anyone that could help them; they were still out there and he was going to find them…no matter how long it took.

He drove back toward the house again and then stopped in the middle of the road. Climbing up into the bed of the truck he raised his binoculars and searched through the fields for a sign of the escaped men. His scanned the field on the left side of the house first; moving the binoculars slowly, watching for the slightest movement but the only thing moving were the leaves of the plants as the wind swirled around them. Beyond that field there was nothing but miles and miles of the Mojave Desert.

Juan shifted his stance and turned to the field on his right and he could see Rico making his way up from the end of the road. The plan was for him to walk up through the middle of the fields and force their escapees to run while Juan watched for any sign of movement from the truck.

The Mexican had been so sure that the men would stay near the road that he had spent most of the day checking the rows closest to the road itself. Juan focused the binoculars further ahead of Rico and the edge of the distant foothills came into view before he moved them back to peruse the field. As if from a distance something that Rico had said that morning clicked in his mind, "_the damn bastards stole my food when they left." _The thought swirled around in his mind. "_Why take the food_?" Carrying extra stuff would only slow them down so why take the time to gather it up and carry it with them. Taking the water was understandable but the only possible reason for taking the food was because they were going to be traveling somewhere that it would be unavailable to them… somewhere that they didn't expect to find anyone that could help them.

"_Wait a minute!" _A sudden thought occurred to him and he swung the binoculars back toward the foothills. "_They wouldn't….would they?" _

He jumped down from the back of his truck and jerked the passenger door open, grabbing the map that was lying on the seat. Juan traced a path with his finger and then angrily folded it up.

"_Swata!" _He called himself; how could he have been so stupid? He slammed the door shut and rushed to the driver's side, flinging the door wide open before pounding the horn with his fist.

Startled, Rico looked up and darted back through the fields to the truck. "Que esta pasando?' He asked breathlessly as flung open the door of the truck and jumped inside.

Juan pressed the accelerator before Rico had a chance to close the door and raced back up the road toward the house. "I think I know where they've gone."

"Where?"

"You'll see." Juan muttered grimly.

The angry Mexican brought the truck to a sudden stop in front of the house, sending sand and stones flying in all directions. Juan jumped out and walked over to the edge of the onion field that was facing the foothills. Rico quickly joined him and looked around for signs of their captives.

"There. " Juan said confidentially, pointing to the mountains. "They're headed for the foothills."

Puzzled, Rico scratched his beard. "That would be stupid man. They would have to cross the desert to get there." he shook his head in disbelief. 'No… no I don't think so man. "

"You are a pendejo/a-a Rico." Juan muttered insultingly. "You see that low right ridge?"

"Yeah, so?" Rico huffed, angry with his cousin for calling him names.

"So. " Juan said, speaking slowly so that his cousin would fully understand. "On the other side of that ridge is Hesperia." He stared thoughtfully at the mountain range for a moment and then continued. "Those two men…..they are pretty smart hombres. Somehow they knew that we would look for them along the road first, giving them the time that they needed to walk to Hesperia."

He walked to the edge of the field, motioning for Rico to follow.

"You go in from that point over there and I'll go in here. " He said pointing to a spot twenty feet from him. "Look for any signs that someone has walked through the field." He glanced at the sun and added in a more urgent tone of voice. "Hurry, the sun will be setting soon."

They separated and moved slowly between the rows of plants looking for a sign to prove the Mexican's theory. Forty-five minutes later Juan excitedly called his cousin over. The older Mexican made a path through the onion beds and ten minutes later found his cousin kneeling by an onion plant.

"I told you." He looked up with a triumphant grin. "Just like I said.... two sets of tracks heading for the foothills. One of them is probably carrying the kid."

Rico frowned. "They have a big head start on us man. They….they could be with the police right now." He glanced around nervously. "Maybe we should head for the border."

Juan jumped up and grabbed Rico's shirt, jerking him around until their faces were only inches apart. "That agent saw my face!" He shouted angrily, spittle flying from his mouth. He flung out his arm toward the foothills and pointed at them. "We can't leave until we take care of them…..understand!"

Fear crossed his face and Rico broke eye contact with his cousin. "But…but what if it is too late?"

Juan released his hold on Rico's shirt and shoved him away disgustedly. "You really are a pendejo/a Rico. It's got to be at least thirty miles to those hills. Both of those men were hurt and they have a five year old girl with them. How fast do you think they can travel?" he said heatedly as he turned away and headed for the house.

Dusk had fallen by the time they left the field and Rico followed Juan around to the back of the house. Juan pointed to a small access road that ran from the back of the house and circled the fields.

"Tomorrow morning, at first light, we will take that road and find the point where they left the field and then we will catch up to them and finish this!" He turned, waiving a closed fist in his cousin's face. "And then it will be over. Ya Estuvo!"

Juan strode away angrily muttering to himself and moments later Rico heard him start up the truck. He took one last look at the foothills in the dwindling light before jumping into the bed of the truck as Juan impatiently pulled out of the clearing.

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The San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department provides police service for the cities of Victorville, Apple Valley, Hesperia and Adelanto but it was a small office compared to the state trooper's facility.

Colby and Nikki stepped through the entrance and glanced around them expecting to see the Sheriff but not a soul was in sight. They shared a puzzled glance and walked to a desk that was near the door.

To the right of the room there was another door that had the word "Sheriff" neatly stenciled upon it and on the left side there was a hallway leading back to the other rooms in the small building. Since it was late, the agents had called ahead to make sure that the sheriff would be there when they arrived so they were surprised when they walked into the station and found it empty.

Colby arched an eyebrow at Nikki and called out. "Hello. Is anyone here?"

Hurried footsteps could be heard from the hallway and suddenly a young deputy appeared carrying a tray filled with a decanter of coffee and several Styrofoam cups. He quickly set it down on one of the desks and stepped over to greet them with a friendly smile.

"Evening." He stretched out his hand to Colby. "I'm Deputy Turner. What can I do for you folks?"

Colby shook his hand. "FBI. I'm Agent Granger and this is Agent Betancourt." he inclined his head. "I assume that you're expecting us?"

"Oh, yes sir, Agent Granger. The sheriff was delayed but he's on his way in and should be here in about ten minutes. In the meantime can I offer you some coffee? "

"Actually that sounds pretty good right now."

They followed the younger man over to the desk and were soon sipping the warm liquid. Colby studied the officer over his cup and put his age at around twenty-four. "_Probably his first assignment." _he thought and then turned his head to hide his grin as the officer blushed at something Nikki had said to him. "_Yep, still wet behind the ears." _he chuckled to himself.

Colby turned as the front door opened and the county sheriff strode in. He hung up his hat on a peg by the door before coming over and offering his hand to both agents.

"Roy Anderson." He stated as a matter of fact. "Want to tell me what's so damn important that it can't wait until tomorrow. I had to leave a good steak dinner to come back here."

"Colby Granger and I can tell you that you won't be getting back to that dinner anytime soon." the agent responded with a quick shake of the sheriff's hand. "This is Special Agent Nikki Betancourt." Now that the introductions were over, the agent got down to business.

"I assume that you're aware of the Wilkins kidnapping."

"Yes. As soon as the amber alert went out we put up our roadblocks." His eyes widened. "You think that the kidnapper is here, in Victorville?"

"Special Agent Don Eppes and his brother, Professor Charles Eppes are also missing. " Nikki tossed out without answering his question.

"I got the report on their disappearance. Do you think the cases are related?" he asked in surprise, looking from one agent to the other but before they could answer he asked another question. "Why do you think they're here?"

"We have reason to believe that the kidnapper is an illegal immigrant working the local farms around here. "

"Really?" The sheriff poured himself a cup of coffee and motioned for the agents to come with him. They followed him down the hallway to a small conference room where they all sat down at a long table.

"We have a sketch of a possible suspect but we don't have a name." Nikki informed the sheriff and his deputy.

Colby pulled the folded paper from his pocket and handed it to Anderson. "We want you to take us to the immigrant camps so we can show this around. We're hoping to find someone that can recognize him."

"That's a lot of camps." Anderson stated. "It'll take you days to go through all of them."

"We have evidence that appears to link this man to onion farms so we want to concentrate on the immigrant workers who are harvesting the onion fields right now."

"How many onion farms are there in the vicinity of Victorville?" Nikki asked.

The sheriff turned to the deputy. "Jeff, could you bring the agricultural map in here."

"Yes, sir. " The young man hurried out of the room and returned a few minutes later. He opened the map and spread it out in the middle of the table.

The sheriff pulled a red pen from a drawer under the table and pointed to the map. "There are three large onion farms in San Bernardino County. This one is the largest farm." he said drawing a red circle around an area. "The Jameson farm grows a variety of onions but they are not ready for harvesting yet. It'll be a few more weeks before they're ready to harvest so I think we can rule that one out." He moved his pen to another spot on the map and drew another circle. "The Parker farm is up in Adelanto and they are harvesting now." His pen moved to another place on the map. "And the last one is "The Sunshine Farm" in Apple Valley, also harvesting now." He looked up. "Both farms maintain immigrant housing on their property."

Colby pushed his chair back and stood up. "Let's get started then."

The sheriff looked at his watch. "It'll be nine o'clock by the time we get to the first farm.' He tilted his head and added. "Agent Granger those people aren't going to appreciate being disturbed at this hour."

Colby met his eye. "That's not my problem Sheriff. If they have nothing to hide our visit will only be a minor annoyance."

"Do you think we'll need a warrant Sheriff?" Nikki asked, pulling out her cell phone.

The sheriff rubbed his chin and shook his head. "No. I don't think so. Most of them are good people, just over here trying to earn a living. I'm sure they will cooperate." He stood up and strode to the door. "We'd better get going; we've got a long night ahead of us."

Dusk had fallen by the time they left the building and Colby switched on his lights as he followed the Sheriff's car out of the parking lot.

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Dark blues, bright oranges and creamy yellows streaked across the darkening sky as the trio gratefully sat down on the blanket. They had finally made it to the foothills but had been surprised by how high and steep the low ridge really was. It would be too dangerous to try and cross it during the night and both of them realized that in their present condition it was unlikely that they could make it over the ridge without any injuries.

Once again the desert sky came to life as nighthawks and bats flew around looking for insects. Howls echoed around them and the brothers shared a look of concern as they observed the silhouettes of coyotes loping along the ridge line. Their only consolation was that the animals appeared to be headed in the opposite direction.

To their immense relief they found a small cave that was tucked under a ledge near the base of the mountain. It had a small overhang and offered them protection on three sides so they quickly gathered up a good supply of deadwood and stacked it near the entrance to the cave. A row of sagebrush had almost hidden the entrance from them but Don had discovered it while he was gathering firewood.

They stacked a line of firewood in a half moon circle in front of the cave entrance and lit it just as darkness fell. The fire not only gave them warmth but also would discourage any visitors that might wander their way during the night. This close to the mountains there had been an abundance of deadwood lying around and even Sammy had helped pick up a few pieces.

They didn't go into the cave right away though; they opted to spread the blanket in front of the fire so they would have a little more room to stretch out while they ate their dinner.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner had consisted of a single slice of peanut butter bread and a cookie and although it was becoming a little tiresome for the guys, the little girl didn't seem to mind it at all and without the hot sun and wind sucking the moisture from their bread it remained soft and moist. She sat happily between them, eating her slice of bread and giggled when Charlie vowed that he was never going to eat peanut butter again.

Despite their hardships, their spirits were beginning to soar. There had been no sign of pursuit and on the other side of the ridge was civilization and help. Even Sammy had picked up on their lighter mood and seemed to enjoy the company of her new uncles.

After dinner, they stretched out on the blanket and stared up at the night sky and Charlie tried to explain a few of the constellations to the little girl.

"Over there is the Milky Way."

"Milky Way?" Sammy gazed skyward, scrunching up her eyes while she followed the direction of Charlie's finger. "But I don't see a milky way and I like them."

Don laughed out loud. "Give it up Chuck; she's not quite ready for star-gazing." He rolled over on his side and tickled her. "I'll buy you a Milky Way candy bar when we get back home. Okay Sammy?"

"O'kay." Sammy said as she giggled and rolled around on the blanket.

Charlie gave up and joined in on the fun and soon Sammy's contagious giggles had infected the Eppes brothers. Their laughter echoed across the sand giving life to an otherwise quiet desert and much needed relief to the constant anxiety that the brothers had been feeling for the last two days.

Finally it was time to sleep but first Samantha had to go potty. The brother's had the routine down to a science now and while Charlie dug the hole in the sand, Don brought over the blanket.

"Go ahead Sammy." Charlie said and grinned when she ran behind the blanket.

"I got it Charlie." Don said as Charlie moved to take the blanket from him.

"Alright, I'll get the "tissue." he said with a grin.

Charlie returned with the small patch of cloth and frowned. "There are only a few pieces left." He smiled ruefully. "We'd better get over the mountain before we run out of clothes."

"You got that right. " Don muttered in agreement.

A few minutes later when the little girl asked for a tissue, he knelt down and handed her the piece of cloth. Don turned his head to the side so that his brother couldn't see the broad grin spreading across his face. _"Dad's never going to believe this_." He thought to himself.

They moved into the cave and Don spread the blanket out so that he and Sammy could lie down and pulled one of the bags over to use as a pillow. Their supplies had dwindled down and now it all fit into one bag so they used the other one to carry all of their empty bottles. They were being very careful about hiding their trail from the two Mexicans and wanted to be certain that they left nothing behind for them to find.

Charlie had the first watch and settled himself just outside the entrance but still within the protective circle of the fire.

He glanced at his brother who was still getting settled and watched as he pulled a corner of the blanket up to cover the little girl. His eyes drifted to the little girls face and he was surprised to see her lying there with her eyes wide open but before he could speak Samantha asked Don a question.

"Uncle Donnie?'

Don's eyes had just drifted closed and for a minute Charlie thought that he had already fallen asleep but he opened one eye and looked at the little girl.

"Hmmm….yes Sammy." he mumbled in a barely audible voice.

"Could you tell me a stowy?'

His other eye shot open instantly. "A story?'

"Uh..huh. Mommy always tells me a stowy befowe I go to sleep."

Don looked to Charlie for help but only received a helpless shrug for his efforts. He cleared his throat. "Uh…what kind of story?"

"How about a stowy about a pwincess?" she said snuggling under the blanket. "I like stowies about pwincesses."

Don pulled himself up to a sitting position and rubbed his forehead. "A princess huh? Let me see now….oh…okay, I've got one."

"Once upon a time there was a little princess with blonde hair and pretty blue eyes." He gazed fondly at the child. "She lived far away in a Kingdom called "The City of Angels" and her Mom and Dad were the King and Queen. They were a good King and Queen and all the people of the kingdom loved them and….and everyone was very happy."

"What was the pwincesses name?"

"Oh, didn't I tell you her name?"

Eyes wide with excitement, the child shook her head and waited for Don to continue.

Don winked at Charlie and then his eyes drifted back to the little girl. "Her name was Princess Samantha."

Sammy giggled. "Weally?"

"Really." Don said. "Now where was I? Oh yeah. They were all very happy but in the neighboring kingdom there lived a man that was not happy. Do you know why the man was so unhappy?" he asked the little girl.

She shook her head and eagerly waited for Don to go on with the story.

Don scratched his chin thoughtfully and continued. "Well the man was unhappy because he was very poor so one day he came up with a plan to steal some of the Kings gold. He knew how much the King and Queen loved their little princess so he decided to kidnap her and make her father give him all of his gold. So one day when no one was looking he grabbed the princess and took her back to his kingdom."

"What happened next?" Samantha whispered fearfully.

"Well, you can imagine how upset the King and Queen were. They didn't really care about the gold; they just wanted their daughter back."

Don paused for a minute, remembering how distraught Samantha's parents had been the last time that he had seen them. He cleared his throat before going on.

"Anyway, the bad guy's plan didn't work out very well because he was followed by ……"

"The Kings First Knight." Charlie interrupted picking up the story with a twinkle in his eye and smiled broadly at the surprised look on his brother's face. Sammy turned and he could see that she was thoroughly caught up in the story.

"The fiwst knight?"

"The First Knight was the strongest and the bravest Knight in the entire realm. His name was Sir Donald and he vowed to find the little princess and bring her home safely. "

"Swr Donald." Sammy repeated reverently.

Charlie fought to keep from laughing as Don rolled his eyes at him. "The King knew that if anyone was going to save his child, it would be Sir Donald."

Don spoke up suddenly. "But he couldn't do it alone; Sir Charles came along to help him."

"Was he a knight too?" Sammy asked, turning her head to look at Don.

"Yes he was. You see, Sir Charles was a very special knight." Don grinned as Charlie's eyebrows rose up in surprise. He leaned closer to Samantha to emphasis his next words and whispered dramatically. "You see he was a "Magical Knight."

Her eyes widened in awe and she breathed the word. "Magic. "

This time it was Charlie that rolled his eyes and he looked away covering his mouth to hide his grin.

"Yes. There was no one else like him in the entire kingdom. Sir Charles could do things that no one else could do and he always used his "special magic" to help other people. So with his help, Sir Donald found the little princess and together they took her away from the bad man and headed back to the kingdom."

"But it wasn't easy." he added, realizing that the story had been too short. "Along the way they had to fight a couple of dragons and a few trolls…and ….and even a two-headed monster but finally they made it safely back to the kingdom and the little princes was reunited with her parents. The King and Queen were so happy to have the little princess back that they threw a big party and invited all of the people of the kingdom to attend…..and they lived happily ever after."

Sammy grinned and clapped her hands. "Happily evew aftew. That was a good stowy."

Don smiled and tucked the blanket around her. "Now its time to go to sleep." He said and lay back down again, curling on his side so that Sammy could cuddle against him and stay warm.

"O'kay." Samantha answered quietly, her eyes already beginning to close. She yawned widely and whispered. "Night Uncle Donnie. Night Uncle Chawlie."

"Good night Sammy." Don whispered, kissing her lightly on the back of her head as he put a protective arm around her.

"Good night Sammy." Charlie said softly and was surprised to see how quickly she fell asleep. The look on her face was peaceful and he swallowed hard against the lump in his throat as he was once again struck with the realization that she trusted them implicitly…that she had no doubt in her mind, that he and Don would get her home to her parents.

When Don had first started his tale, Charlie had been afraid that the parallel to their real situation would upset the child but as the story unfolded he realized that by turning her experience into a fairy tale it gave her a chance for hope in a way that only a child could understand.

Charlie added a few more pieces of wood to their fire and crossed his arms, settling himself more comfortably against the corner of the cave entrance. He yawned widely and rubbed at his eyes and decided that it was a good thing that Don had insisted on changing the watch every two hours. The days trek had been rough on both of them and he knew that he was going to have trouble just staying awake for that short of time.

He turned his head and glanced back inside the cave, his eyes drifting downward to his brothers face. Don continued to amaze him, even in sleep a part of him was still the guardian; his arm was still curled protectively around Sammy, keeping her safe and warm. This was a side of his brother that he had almost forgotten about and memories of his childhood began to swirl through his mind.

He had many warm memories of a time when he would crawl up on his big brother's lap and fall asleep or times when the two of them would lay on a blanket in the backyard and gaze at the stars. A distant time before his gift had pulled them apart and set them on different paths.

Charlie leaned forward and tossed another piece of wood into the flames before returning to his thoughts. It had taken many years and the death of their mother to finally bring them back together again but through trial and error their paths had been rejoined and once again he felt that close bond that they had shared in childhood.

A smile spread across his features as he thought of Don and Robin. They were good for each other and Charlie couldn't help but wonder what their children might look like. Don would make a good father, he could tell that from the way that he treated Sammy, and Charlie looked forward to the day when he would be a real uncle instead of a pretend one

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Dusk was falling as Alan, Robin and Amita left the Math building. It had taken her a while to go through Charlie's notes but it had been to no avail. Whatever Charlie had discovered had been at the FBI office and would be on his laptop. They were headed back there now; Larry had just called her with the news that David had finally brought him Charlie's laptop

None of them were prepared for the sight that greeted them as they left the building. While they had been inside a multitude of people carrying candles had arrived and were gathering in front of the Math building.

Three, eight by ten photographs had been placed on the lawn in front of them. Hundreds of flowers surrounded the pictures and more were being added as other people joined the milling crowd.

Alan caught his breath when he got a closer look at the pictures and tears threatened to spill over as he recognized the faces of his sons and the little girl. The photographs of Don and Samantha had been blown up from the ones that were printed in the afternoon paper but Charlie's picture was from the cover of his book.

Alan covered his mouth, his heart touched by the emotions reflected in the eyes of the people in front of him. He recognized professors and administrators as well as students in the crowd and was overwhelmed by their thoughtfullness.

The three of them stood side by side, speechless, silently saying their own prayers for their loved ones safe return. One by one, the people began to sit down on the ground in front of the photographs. Suddenly they were spotted by a student and she hurried over to speak with them.

The young woman was close to tears as she looked up at him. "Mr. Eppes, Professor Ramanujan, I hope you don't mind but we wanted to have a candlelight vigil and pray for their safe return. "

"It's a very thoughtful thing for you to do Katy." Amita responded, her voice cracking slightly.

"Yes it is." Alan said in a voice thick with emotion. "I appreciate what you're doing."

"Thank you for doing this." Robin said softly.

"I have extra candles with me if you would like to join us."

"We may come back and join you later but right now we really have to go." Robin said as her hand folded around one of Alan's.

"Yes, we do. " Amita agreed taking hold of Alan's other hand.

Together, she and Robin gently led him away from the concerned crowd.

TBC

Translations:

Swata = idiot

Que esta pasanda = what's happening

Pendejo/a-a = a stupid person

Ya estuvo = it's finished, done with


	15. Chapter 15

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I appreciate all of your reviews. Thank you.

Special note: "Awesome review Mrs. GC and from one "storyteller" to another, I humbly thank you for your gracious words."

Chapter 15:

Colby's cell phone rang just as he was pulling out of the parking lot. Without taking his eyes off of the road he pulled out his phone and flipped it open and after a quick glance at the ID of the caller he immediately flashed his lights to get the sheriff's attention and pulled off to the side of the road.

"Granger." The agent answered, his eyes following the path of the patrol car as the deputy turned around and pulled up beside of him. "Right. We'll be there in a few minutes." He closed the phone and glanced at Nikki.

"That was Trooper Henderson; he's waiting for us at the CHIP's station." He pressed the button and the driver's side window began to lower but before it was all the way down he leaned out to speak with the sheriff.

"We have to make a quick stop at the highway patrol station. Follow me." He said and turned the car around.

Five minutes later the sheriff, deputy and the two agents were walking through the entrance of the California Highway Patrol station. Once again Colby and Nikki approached the desk but before they could address the sergeant a voice spoke up from behind them.

"Agent Granger?"

The group turned as one and they found themselves face to face with the elusive Samuel Henderson. He stood six feet tall and Colby could tell from Nikki's glances that she appreciated the way the man filled out his uniform. The lightly graying hair at his temples and a few crows' feet around his brown eyes was the only physical evidence that the man was in his fifties.

"I'm Granger." Colby said accepting the man's hand and giving it a quick shake as he introduced Nikki.

"Sam Henderson." The trooper said, introducing himself and then nodded to the sheriff and his deputy. "Roy, Jeff."

"Everything alright Sam?" The sheriff inquired with a pointed look at the agents.

The officer nodded. "Everything is fine Roy." He answered turning back to face Colby and Nikki. "These folks are just here because of a tattoo that I saw on a man last night. Isn't that right agents?"

"A tattoo?" Jeff spoke up in surprise. "You mean that spider one, the one that we were notified about yesterday?"

"That's right. We have reason to believe that the man that you saw is involved in the kidnapping of Samantha Wilkins and the disappearance of a federal agent and a federal consultant." Colby glanced around the office. "Is there somewhere that we can talk?"

"Yeah, sure. Follow me."

Colby turned to the sheriff before following the trooper. "You two might as well join us; you're involved in this investigation now. "

The small group followed Henderson to a conference room that was located to the right of the main desk and soon the sound of scraping chairs could be heard as everyone sat down.

The agent pulled a folded piece of paper from his jacket pocket and handed it to the state trooper.

"Is this the man you saw last night?"

Sam scanned the picture carefully. "It was dark and I just saw him by the light of my flashlight but it could be him." He rubbed his chin and studied it again. "It looks like him but there was something different about the man that I saw." He pulled a pen from his pocket but his hand paused above the picture, and he looked up, meeting Colby's eye.

"Okay if I add something to the picture? "

"That depends, what do you have in mind? "

"Well the man I saw had a scar on his face. "

"Okay, go ahead. " Colby said and watched closely as Trooper Henderson drew a scar on the right side of the man's face that extended from under his eye to his thick moustache.

"Now he looks like the man I saw last night; eyes, nose, thick moustache and long hair. It's the same man." he said as he handed the sketch back to Colby. "The man was definitely a Chicano. " The trooper added. "He spoke with a heavy Mexican accent."

"You spoke with him? " Nikki asked excitedly. "And you're positive this is the same man that had the tattoo on his arm?"

"One and the same." Henderson answered confidentially. "As a matter of fact it was the tattoo that we talked about. When I waved the flashlight over him it looked like it was moving so I thought it was some kind of bug. I asked him about it and he told me that it was just a tattoo of a spider so I took a closer look at it and sure enough it was a tarantula." Despite his size the trooper shuddered slightly. "Gave me the creeps, damn thing looked real."

"Tell me where you saw this guy?" Colby asked, leaning forward in his chair.

"There was a four car pile up on I 15 last night and he was in one of the cars that was caught up in the traffic jam. The accident happened just around midnight and was just below the exit for Hesperia.' He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "I didn't see the BOLO about the tattoo until I came back on duty this evening."

"What kind of vehicle was he driving?" Nikki asked with her pen poised over her notebook.

The officer shook his head. "He wasn't the one driving, another man was."

"He wasn't alone?" Colby shared a concerned look with Nikki. "Serial pedophiles always work alone. You're sure this was our guy?"

"Without a doubt." The officer reiterated firmly.

Nikki frowned. "If there were two of them that might explain how they got the drop on Don. "

"Yeah, it just might." Colby commented worriedly and turned back to the officer. "Can you give us a description of the other guy?"

"Definitely Latino and I'd put his age somewhere in his early thirties, but as different from the other man as night is to day. " He commented with a nod toward the sketch.

Nikki crossed her arms and cocked her head. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, this man." he said tapping the sketch with his finger. "was filthy, he looked like he hadn't taken a bath for a week or more. His hair was dirty and hung down to his shoulders. I couldn't see his pants very clearly but the tee shirt that he was wearing had seen better days." He paused, rubbing his chin as he thought about the differences between the two men.

"Now this other guy, he likes to show off a bit, put on a show, if you know what I mean. He wore one of those expensive designer shirts and I'd bet a months pay that the watch that he was wearing cost a pretty penny too." Sam leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. "He had a neatly trimmed goatee and his hair looked like it had been styled too; you know, like the kind you get from one of those fancy salons." He shook his head. "I never would have pegged those two for traveling companions."

"Sam." the sheriff spoke up. "Did you talk to that guy too?"

"Briefly, he just asked me what the hold up was. His English was good; barely had an accent and he seemed a little more educated than the other one."

"You got all of that from just a few minutes with a flashlight?" Nikki asked in a skeptical tone of voice.

The officer shrugged. "I notice things Agent, that's a part of my job but I thought those two made an odd pair so I paid a little closer attention to them."

"The suspect could have been hitchhiking?" The deputy suggested.

"It's doubtful." Colby commented and went on to explain after noting the puzzled expression on the younger mans face. "If our driver was so particular about his appearance it's highly unlikely that he would pick up a dirty hitchhiker. I think it's more likely that they were traveling together." The agent turned to face the trooper again.

"Did you get the sense that they were strangers?"

Henderson shook his head. "No, they were together. I'm the one that made them nervous. "

"It's lucky for us that you're so observant. " Colby said, trying to smooth over Nikki's brash statement. "We're going to need a sketch artist so we can get his picture out to all law enforcement offices tonight."

Henderson nodded his head. "Shelby Barton is on duty tonight, I can have her create a sketch for you before you head out."

"Good, we need to put a priority on that."

Nikki scribbled down some notes. "Do you remember what kind of vehicle they were in?"

"I had no reason to get the license number but I do remember what he was driving. It was one of those big pick up trucks, some foreign job. I think it was a Nissan Titan, 2001 or 2002, white with a dark trim."

"Anything else that you would like to add Officer Henderson?"

The trooper shook his head. "That about covers it Agent Granger. "

Colby pushed his chair back from the table signaling an end to the meeting. 'I appreciate your help." He said shaking the officer's hand once again. "We can leave as soon as we get that sketch. "

"Right." Henderson responded and quickly left the room.

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David pulled the pencil from between his teeth and stopped tapping on his keys when the phone rang.

"Sinclair." he listened attentively and slowly stood up. "He's sure. Good. At least now we know we're on the right trail. Yeah, send it over and keep me posted."

"What's going on?" Liz asked as he suddenly bolted for the door.

"Colby's sending us a couple of sketches. I'll be right back; I just want to print them out."

He hurried back a few minutes later carrying copies of the two sketches and a smile spread across his face as he joined Liz.

"It's about time we got a break. Check this out." he said handing them to the young woman. "We have an ID on the drifter in the sketch and it's from a solid witness. The state trooper is positive that he saw our suspect and he had the spider tattoo on his forearm. We now know for sure that he is the man that kidnapped Samantha Wilkins and is responsible for Don and Charlie's disappearance. The officer said that the man now has a scar on his face so they updated the sketch."

David rubbed a hand over his face tiredly and sat down on the edge of the table. "Now we just need a name to go with the face."

"Who is the guy in the other sketch?"

David shook his head. "All we know is that he was driving the truck that the trooper saw our suspect in. There is a strong possibility that it's the same truck that left the tire tracks in the clearing where we found Don's car. Run his sketch against the DMV records, maybe we'll get lucky."

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The chopsticks in Alan's hands seemed to shake of their own volition and no matter how hard he tried he just couldn't seem to control the nervous twitching of his fingers. He had barely taken two bites from the container that he was holding; the Moo Shu Pork and steamed rice, normally an enjoyable meal for him, just seemed to turn to dust in his mouth.

His apprehension over the disappearance of his sons was growing with each passing hour and food had become the least of his concerns. It wasn't until Robin had asked him when he had eaten last that he realized that he had been running on caffeine fumes all day. Alan had pushed the thought of food and the occasional rumble of his stomach to the back of his mind ever since he had played back the phone messages that morning.

On their way back from CalSci the girls had insisted that they bring food back for the rest of the team so now he sat at an empty table in the break room at the FBI building. Half empty containers of various Chinese dishes littered the table because the team had taken only a few minutes to eat before returning to the conference room to continue with the investigation.

Alan gathered up his cartons as he rose from the table and tossed them into the garbage container. His shoulders sagged dispiritedly as he shuffled slowly out of the room but as the door closed behind him he paused, mentally reviewing the team's discussion of the case.

David and Liz had brought them up to speed on the investigation and he now knew that they were looking for two men instead of one. As if one man had not been bad enough, now there were two to worry about; the odds of finding his sons alive were rapidly diminishing. Although David and Liz had tried to sound encouraging, telling him quite earnestly that Colby and Nikki were on the right trail and that they just needed a little more time to put all of the pieces together. But their expressions were telling him something very different; he had seen doubt, fear, worry and desperation reflecting in both of their eyes and that had made his hopes sink even lower.

Alan stood there, hollow eyed and feeling lost amid the busy agents as they hurried by him to perform their duties. What should he do now? Where should he go? He glanced through the glass walls at the team busily following the leads; even Robin had found a way to assist them. Amita and Larry were busy trying to break the encryption codes protecting Charlie's files so they could figure out where the brothers had gone. He swallowed hard, there was nothing more that he could do here, he would only be in their way if he stayed. His eyes fell upon Don's desk, empty now of his sons commanding presence; its owner no longer the efficient agent but now a victim….along with his younger brother.

He turned suddenly and strode deliberately for the elevators. As the doors closed and the elevator began its descent, Alan raised his head with a purpose. There was something that he could do right now and he didn't have to do it alone.

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Don grabbed a small stick and stoked the fire a little higher. The wind appeared to be picking up but so far the rocks and sagebrush had offered enough protection to keep the flames from flickering out.

Narrowing his eyes, he gazed beyond the firelight, trying to see into the darkness and mentally traced the path they had taken from the old farmhouse. It was almost as if he could sense the hatred emanating across the sands and feel the determination of the chicanos to find them and kill them.

"Had they discovered their path yet? Were they already on the trail and if so, would there be enough time for them to escape over the mountain? These questions swirled through his mind but he had no answers and there was no way for him to figure it out.

Don didn't have any facts to base his feelings on but somehow he just knew that the Mexicans would be coming for them. Call it a gut feeling or whatever you wanted too, but the agent had no doubt in his mind that sooner or later he would meet them again. He just hoped that it was on his terms this time and that luck would give him the upper hand instead of the other way around.

The agent rose to his feet and arched his back to work out the stiffness but he froze when he heard a strange noise. Tilting his head to the side, he strained to hear the slightest sound but the only noise that he heard was the sound of the incessant wind as it blew across the sands.

"_Must have been my imagination." _He thought to himself, but he remained still, listening for just a little while longer. Don shook his head in disbelief; for just a moment he thought he had heard the sharp, shrill cries of puppies coming from somewhere near the cave.

"Charlie's right, the sun is getting to me." He muttered as he tossed some more of the wood onto the fire.

Dismissing the noise, Don sat down again and mentally began to review the steps that his team would be taking to find them. He knew all of the procedures that they would be following but he wasn't sure if they had enough evidence to lead them in the right direction.

A low moan caught his attention and his head swiveled toward the cave. Charlie had rolled over and Don could see a painful expression cross his face as he straightened out his right leg. The discomfort didn't wake him up though, he just shifted around until he was more comfortable and then nodded off again.

Don's brow creased with worry, afraid that the muscle spasm in Charlie's leg might make it more difficult for him to climb the mountain range in the morning. His brother hadn't complained about it after they had settled in for the evening so Don had assumed the cramp had gone away. He scrubbed a hand through his hair and sighed; maybe the muscle in Charlie's leg was just sore, that could sometimes happen with a cramp.

Samantha squirmed around and rolled over on top of his brother. She squeezed her small body between his arm and his side and then used his chest for a pillow. Don couldn't stifle a grin as her small hand snaked up and latched onto a handful of curls. She snuggled closer as Charlie's soft snores lulled her back to sleep.

Don shook his head in wonder; it seemed that girls of all ages liked his brother's curls, even when they were full of sand.

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It was ten o'clock by the time they arrived at the Parker farm and although the drive to Adelanto has been a quiet one it had done nothing to ease the tension within the vehicle. Tense with worry and fatigue, both agents were eager for some action; preferably something that would help them in their efforts to locate Don , Charlie and the little girl.

Colby and Nikki were surprised at the size of the migrant camp. Six rows of single dwellings about the size of a two bedroom trailer were spread out over an area roughly the size of a football field. There were also two larger buildings, one at each end of the camp, and a smaller structure placed strategically near the center of the encampment which housed a laundramat for the immigrants. Lamp posts spread around the camp provided enough light for the residents to move around safely during the evening hours.

The Sheriff had called ahead to notify the owner of their arrival so it was no surprise to find the man nervously standing beside the small building near the center of the camp. Colby and Nikki flipped open their badges for the man and identified themselves.

"FBI?" The short, balding man repeated anxiously. "But I haven't done anything. I've followed all of the regulations."

"Relax Mr. Parker." Colby raised his hands in a placating manner. "We're not here to inspect the camp." He pulled the two sketches from his pocket and motioned for the man to follow him to one of the lamp posts. "Do you recognize either of these men?"

Parker carefully looked at the sketches and shook his head slowly. "No, they don't look familiar to me." He looked up anxiously. "I'm sure that they aren't here."

"How many workers do you have?" Nikki asked.

Parker turned around to face the other agent. "Forty families occupy the single homes." He said pointing to the buildings as he spoke. "Thirty women live in the barracks on the left and in the one at the far right there are fifty-five men."

"We need to show these sketches to everyone here." Colby said as he put his ear radio in place.

The man goggled at him, eyes widening in disbelief as he looked from agent to agent. "Now? Can't this wait until morning?"

"Lives are at stake Mr Parker. We don't have time to wait until morning." Colby said grimly, with a look that said he meant business.

"The sooner we get started." Nikki added as she put her own ear piece in place. "The sooner we'll be out of your hair."

Colby turned to the Sheriff. "Let's split up into pairs."

"I'll go with Agent Betancourt." The deputy spoke up suddenly and even in the dim light it was easy to see the flush spreading across his face. He ducked his head, avoiding eye contact, embarrassed at volunteering to go with her so quickly.

Colby stifled a grin at Nikki's arched eyebrow but she nodded in agreement and pulled out her copies of the sketches.

"Let's get started then."

The Sheriff and Colby started at one end of the camp while Nikki and Jeff began at the other. Roy glanced at the retreating figures and then met Colby's eye

"She's going to eat him alive." He commented dryly

"Yep." Colby chortled as he knocked on the door of the first house. "The kid doesn't stand a chance."

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The crowd at the candlelight vigil had grown but the administrators at CalSci had informed campus security that as long as order was maintained, the vigil was to be open to anyone that wanted to attend, whether they had ties to the campus or not. To the dismay of the administrators, however, the gathering had also grown large enough to catch the news media's attention and several news vans were currently parked in the CalSci parking lot.

Professor Ray Galinski sat on the ground near the photographs and looked around as the people around him shifted to make room for a new arrival. He recognized the parents of the missing girl as they made their way through the silent crowd. Ray's heart went out to them as he watched them slowly approach the makeshift altar. Mrs Wilkins was carrying a pink, stuffed teddy bear along with three long-stemmed pink roses. Mr. Wilkins had one hand under her elbow, supporting her as she walked and carried two small candles in his free hand.

The little girl's parents knelt down in front of the pictures and her mother placed a rose in front of each of the brother's photographs. She leaned the teddy bear against the side of her daughter's picture and placed the last rose against them both, letting her fingers trace lightly along her little girls face in the picture. After a moment a sob escaped her throat and her husband gathered her in his arms and whispered softly to her. She nodded her head silently and held her candle out for him to light. Soon both had settled more comfortably on the ground and with bowed heads they joined the others in their silent vigil.

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Charlie stood up and stretched, arching his back to work out a few aches and pains. He stepped over the fire and walked around the area in front of the cave and looked for anything that might be a threat to them but all appeared quiet. His leg ached from the cramp that he had experienced earlier in the day but it was just sore now and with time he would work out the soreness. After a moment he returned to his seat and tossed more wood onto the fire and his eyes drifted upward, following the sparks as they floated toward the night sky bringing his attention to the millions of stars that appeared to surround them.

Out here, away from the tall buildings and the city lights, it was as if the sky encompassed them in a bubble, as if the stars came down and touched the desert horizon. The only thing that broke the skyline was the mountain range behind him. Larry would be in his element here, and Charlie could hear his friend's voice in his mind as his eyes came to rest on the Milky Way.

"_Now Charles, notice how that band of light is brighter in places, with those clumps of light and dark streaks. See how that dark band looks absent of stars but still has a glow of light? That glow of light is actually from stars that are so far away that we can't quite make them out. The dark lanes are actually interstellar dust that blocks out our view and the clumps of light are clouds of stars."_

"How are you doing Charlie?" Don's voice was low and barely audible, his eyes still clouded by sleep. "Is it my turn yet?"

Charlie smiled fondly at him at him and answered softly. "I'm fine Don. Go back to sleep, I'll wake you when it's your turn."

Don yawned, nodded his head and was soon asleep once again.

Charlie's gaze turned to the south, near the horizon, toward the center of the galaxy. The stars were the richest there, and he easily picked out the constellations of Sagittarius and Scorpio. As his eyes drifted to Scorpio the numbers concerning the constellation automatically began to run through his mind: Right ascension: 16 hrs. 53 min. 15 sec, Area: 497 sq. deg. (33rd), 15 main stars, 13 bright stars, 7 stars with known planets, 3 nearby stars, Nearest star: HD 156384 (22.74 ly), brightest star: Antares (0.96)

A coyote howled in the distance and brought him back to earth. He sighed and tossed another piece of wood on their small fire. It was so tempting to lose himself in the numbers but he had to focus on their situation.

Charlie glanced at the sleeping duo and knew with a certainty that tonight would be their last night on the desert. He couldn't predict what tomorrow was going to bring but in his heart, he knew as long as he and Don were together, they would get Sammy home.

A loud mournful howl followed closely by short yips suddenly cut through the night air putting an end to his musings.

Charlie stood up slowly, peering out into the darkness. The coyotes were close…very close. He couldn't see them yet but he knew they were out there.

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The crowd stirred again and Ray looked up in surprise to see Alan Eppes slowly making his way through the clusters of people. He moved up to sit next to the older man as he knelt in front of the pictures, squeezing his shoulder lightly to let him know that he was there for support, should he need it.

Alan met Ray's eyes with a grateful nod before returning his gaze to his son's photographs. On his way over he had stopped at an all night grocery store to pick up a candle and some roses and as Ray lit his candle for him, he reverently laid the roses in front of the photographs. As he placed one in front of the child's picture he became aware of the woman to his right and looked up into the red-rimmed eyes of the little girl's mother.

Angela Wilkins took his hand and squeezed it lightly. "Your sons?" She whispered softly.

"Yes." he answered, his voice thick with emotion. "They're good boys….they're all I have left." His voice broke and he looked down while he gathered himself together. "It doesn't matter how old they are….they'll…they'll….always be my "little boys." His lips quivered and he wiped at the moisture around his eyes with his other hand.

Alan looked up and gazed into the young woman's mournful eyes and defiance crept into his heart;he wasn't ready to give up, not yet. He refused to believe that all hope was lost;refused to admit to himself or anyone else that his sons and her little girl were gone forever.

"They're coming back, all three of them. I believe that with all of my heart." He said passionately and felt his resolve grow stronger with each word he spoke.

Angela's hand tightened in his as she whispered. "I pray that you are right."

TBC


	16. Chapter 16

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I truly appreciate your reviews. Thank you.

Chapter 16:

Colby pulled his car out onto the highway and thumped the dashboard in frustration.

"Damn it!" He said heatedly as he stepped on the accelerator in an effort to catch up with the patrol car. No one at the Parker Farm had recognized either of the men in the sketches and now the agents were headed toward the farm located in Apple Valley.

Nikki stared silently through the car window, straining to see the parts of the desert that were illuminated by the cars headlights as they moved along the highway; searching for a sign of her friends before the patches of the Mojave faded back into darkness.

"Are you okay?'

She didn't answer right away, she hesitated, not sure of how much of herself that she should reveal to her partner. Nikki was the newest member of the team and although she seemed to be fitting in well she was still the stranger in the group. She had taken to the team members right away but she wasn't sure how they felt about her. Finally she decided it was better to go with her true feelings.

"Yeah. I was thinking about Don and Charlie. I was just wondering if they were out there in the desert ….somewhere….you know….in the dark." She glanced sideways at Colby, trying to read his expressions in the light emanating from the dashboard. "I was so sure that we were going to find at least one of those men….and then… he'd tell us where to find them." She turned back to face the side window and rested her forehead against the cool glass as she gazed out into the darkness. "I don't want to find them when….when…..it's too late." Her voice dropped to a whisper but it was loud enough for her partner to hear.

Colby remained silent, he knew the feeling, had felt it many times when he served in Afghanistan. But this time, it was different somehow….more personal and far worse. He had worked closely with the Eppes brothers for four years and had formed a deep bond with them as well as their father. A knot was beginning to form in the pit of his stomach; a knot born out of the growing fear that they might already be too late.

The darkened landscape flew by with the silence broken only by the chatter on the police radio. He recognized the codes as they were called out and mentally checked them off in his head. Code 10:31meant the officer was requesting a breathalyzer operator; a 10:10 in progress had another trooper on his way to the local Burger King to stop a fight. As code after code was called out it became apparent that the sheriff's dept and the state troopers were having one hell of a busy night.

"This town is almost as bad as LA. " Nikki muttered sarcastically and then shared a grin with Colby a few minutes later when Code 10-45 (taking a coffee break) came across the air waves.

"Now I could use one of those."

"Make that two to go, please." Colby agreed dryly.

They were almost at the entrance ramp for Interstate 15 when Colby noticed a bar and grille about a hundred feet from the roadside. The tall neon sign standing at the corner of the parking lot pictured a Mexican wearing a sombrero and just above the picture was the name of the bar "The El Diablo." It stood out in large, bold red letters but two of the letters had burned out and it now read "T e El Di blo."

"Call Anderson. Tell him to turn around." Colby exclaimed suddenly as he turned the wheel and veered off of the road. He skidded to a sudden stop in a bare patch of sand just below the bar.

Nikki pressed both hands against the dashboard at the same time the seat belt halted her forward motion. "Hey Granger, how about a little warning next time!" The agent exclaimed, enforcing her words with a glare as she flipped open her cell phone and relayed the message to the sheriff.

Colby shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry it was a spur of the moment kind of thing."

"Yeah, well you execute that move again and we'll see how many "spur of the moment things" that you have left."

Two minutes later, the sheriff's car came back into view and pulled up alongside the agent's car.

Colby pointed to the bar with a flick of his thumb. "Do you think that we might find a few immigrants inside that bar?"

"Most of them tend to stay close to the farms that they're working on. That said, however, there are always a few that manage to find their way here." He responded, eyeing the bar thoughtfully. "It looks like they have a full house tonight. Do you want to pass the sketches around in there?" At Colby's nod he added. "The El Diablo is known to serve a rough crowd, especially at this time of the night."

Colby smirked. "I can be tough too and besides I've got a hunch. It can't hurt to check it out. "

"It's your show." Anderson said in a tired voice. "At least we can grab some coffee to take with us. Let's go Jeff."

Nikki cocked her head to the side. "Hunch, huh? Would that be like one of Don's hunches? "

"Let's hope so. " Colby muttered as he turned the car around and followed the sheriff's car.

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Shannon Kendall glanced in the mirror, checking her make-up and hair before she climbed out of the News van.

"Jacob." She said motioning for the camera man to join her. She turned and pointed at the Math building and the darkened windows of the office on the top floor. Tomorrow she planned to interview the school administrators to ask if she could photograph the professor's office.

"I want you to pan up to the Professor's office during the broadcast and of course, get the candlelight vigil from a lot of different angles."

The older camera man knew his craft and scanned the grounds searching for the best vantage points. He started to move away when the reporter grabbed his arm.

"Look, that's Alan Eppes, father of the missing men. I recognize him from footage taken when he was a city planner." She had researched all of the people involved and knew their histories quite well. "This is great, focus on the individuals in front of the photographs; the girl's parents are sitting next to him." She straightened out her microphone and stepped in front of the math building.

"This is Shannon Kendall reporting to you live from CalSci University where the candlelight vigil continues on into the night. Alan Eppes, father of the missing men, and Mark and Angela Wilkins, parents of the missing girl, have also joined the vigil"

Jacob swiveled his camera and focused on the people as she announced their names. He kept the camera on them and then let it slowly drift over the large crowd before returning it back to the reporter.

"The building behind me is the Math building and the large office on the corner is occupied by Professor Charles Eppes. This prestigious office has been the home of CalSci's most brilliant mathematicians. Since 1922 it has been the tradition of CalSci's math department to allow only the most gifted of their professors this honor and only Professor's Hightower, Newberry, Knox and Beederman have preceded Professor Eppes to this office. He is the youngest professor to achieve this honor but he may also set a new record for the office, as the Professor who occupied it for the shortest period of time."

"The FBI maintains that they have no evidence connecting the two cases together but it would seem that the people here have come to a different conclusion."

"This is Shannon Kendall for Channel 69 News. Back to you Grant."

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A wave of Latin music, combined with loud, shrill laughter hit them as soon as they climbed out of the cars. The bar was a large rectangular two-story building made to resemble an old time western saloon complete with the swinging doors. The windows of the bar were wide open and Nikki wrinkled her nose at the cloud of cigarette smoke that was wafting through them.

"I guess they don't know that smoking is bad for your health." She commented sarcastically, waving the cloud away from her nose.

Colby chuckled. "Well I'll let you share that tidbit of information with them."

He paused with a hand on one of the swinging doors and perused the busy scene. The only visible sign of the current economic crisis was in the faded colors and broken tiles of the festive decorations that were scattered about the room. Once brightly colored Mexican blankets hung on the walls; their vivid reds, yellows and blues now faded with age. Several large sombreros hung on the walls and large ceramic pots were spaced around the room; pieces of one still marked the spot where it had recently stood.

Table tops were covered in tiles and ornate Mexican designs were visible beneath baskets of tortilla chips and bowls of salsa. The long wooden bar at the back of the room must have been quite a sight in its heyday. Ornate designs were carved into the seven foot bar and would have really caught the eye if it had been cleaned and polished but it was apparent that it hadn't been taken care of for some time. Colorful tiles covered the counter top and were reflected in the large mirrors adorning the wall behind the bar. A multitude of liquor bottles decorated the shelves in front of the mirrors and were emptying out in a rapid pace as the two bartenders tried to keep up with their patrons.

Nikki stepped up beside of him and scanned the people inside. "I feel like I just walked into a western movie."

Colby snorted and with another glance around the room pushed through the doors. The swinging doors brushed past him as he led the way to the bar which was proving to be no easy task.

The place was packed, no empty seats or vacant stools at the bar, even the spaces between the stools were taken up by standing patrons; some standing better than others. There was one pool table near the center of the room with four players and a group of men standing around the table placing bets on the outcome.

An old fashioned juke-box was standing in one corner of the room and Gloria Estevan's "Turn the Beat Around" had just started to play. The patrons had pushed a few tables back against the wall to open up a dance floor and a large group of people were now dancing to the spirited tune.

Glasses of all shapes and sizes were scattered about the room housing the different elixirs that helped the patrons loosen up and leave their worries behind. And it was working too, shouts, laughter and an occasional argument provided competition for the lively Latin tune. To say the place was packed would have been an understatement and Colby couldn't help but wonder if the bar had exceeded its occupant limitations.

The agent led the way to the bar; weaving his way around a group of young Latino men that were wearing gang colors. Heads turned as they walked through the barroom, weighing and measuring the newcomers, but no one tried to prevent them from getting through.

Sheriff Anderson and Colby stopped at the end of the bar and motioned for one of the bar tenders to come over. As the woman made her way to them Colby's eyes flickered to the other bartender, He didn't look old enough to be in the bar, certainly not old enough to be serving drinks, and yet he deftly mixed the drinks as if he had been doing it for years.

"_Probably has." _He thought to himself as he turned his attention to the older woman and flashed his badge. "Special Agent Colby Granger, FBI"

The woman gave him a cold appraising look and turned toward the sheriff. "Que Pasa Sheriff?" She asked, speaking in a loud voice in an effort to be heard over the music.

She put her elbows on the bar and leaned forward; the low cut blouse that she was wearing left very little to the imagination but it didn't have the obvious distraction that she was going for so she straightened up slightly. Her expression changed from a friendly one to one of suspicion as she perused each of them before returning her gaze to Anderson. She may have only stood five feet and three inches tall but her demeanor spoke volumes and Colby doubted that anyone in the bar would ever challenge her authority. Her long black hair may have been interlaced with streaks of gray but sharp, dark eyes made it clear that age had not dulled her mind.

"Evening, Rosa." Anderson said in a loud voice as he tipped his hat. He had learned a long time ago that a little politeness would garner him more cooperation than forcefulness. "We're looking for two men and I need you to take a look at these pictures and see if you recognize either of them."

Anderson handed her the sketch of the driver of the truck first.

"Si." She took the sketch from him and briefly studied it before handing it back to him with a shake of her head. "No lo se."

"Cut the crap Rosa. I know that you can speak English."

Rosa clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Very well. I do not know this man." She said pointing to the sketch of Juan. "Okay?"

"Gracias, Rosa." Anderson couldn't suppress a grin. "What about the other man? This guy also has a tattoo like this one on his arm. " He said pointing to a sketch of the tattoo that had been drawn alongside of the man's picture.

She stared at the picture thoughtfully and Colby was sure he caught a glimpse of recognition in her eyes before she shoved it back toward the sheriff.

"No. Sorry, haven't seen him." She started to turn away but Colby grabbed her by the wrist.

"You're lying." He stated grimly. "You recognized him, I saw it in your eyes. "

Frantically, she tried to pull her arm away. "I told you that I don't know him."

"Agent Granger." The sheriff started but Colby cut him off.

He leaned over the bar until his face was only a few inches from hers. "Do you know what this man does Rosa?" He paused for effect. "He rapes and murders little girls. Do you really want to protect someone like that?"

Wide eyed she shook her head fearfully. "No. No I don't"

Colby released her wrist and spoke in a gentler tone of voice. "Then tell me his name and where I can find him."

"I don't know his name, he…he comes in here sometimes with Julio." She looked fearfully at the picture of the tattoo. "I remember that….he is a strange man."

"What about this Julio?" Nikki prompted.

Rosa glanced around the barroom. "He was here a while ago but I don't see him now."

Colby removed a card from his pocket and placed it on the bar. "If he comes in here again I want to know about it. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it."

"Good. Now we are going to have a talk with your patrons. Is that going to be a problem?"

She grinned broadly at him "It's not a problem for me but it might be for you."

The Sheriff tapped her on the shoulder. "Not if you tell everyone to cooperate with us and believe me Rosa, it will be in your best interest for them to cooperate." To give her a little more incentive he coughed and waved a hand through the air. "Exactly where did you put that "No Smoking Sign" that I ordered you to hang up?" Anderson leaned forward and gave her a knowing look. "Comprendo?"

Rosa's smile faded and her dark eyes flashed angrily and with a toss of her head she stormed over to the juke-box. Closing her fist tightly she pounded on top of the machine until the music stopped playing. When the patrons turned to her in surprise she announced in a fast-flowing articulation of Spanish words exactly what she wanted them to do. Heads turned from her to the newcomers at the bar while she was making her announcement. When she was finished she crossed her arms and stood by the juke-box.

"Comprendo?" She asked with a raised eyebrow and then glared at the sheriff.

The sheriff met her eye and tipped his hat again. "Gracious Rosa."

They decided to split the room up so Colby and the sheriff took one side of the room and Nikki and the deputy began at the other end. Many of the people were of Latino descent and accustomed to harsh treatment from the law officials in their own native countries so they eyed the agents suspiciously as they moved around the room but even those patrons looked at the sketches and answered the questions about Julio, more afraid of what the law might do to them if they didn't cooperate. Colby happened to glance out of the window just as a man left the bar by a side door. He narrowed his eyes and studied the figure as he staggered toward the parking lot. The man stopped under the neon light, swaying slightly, as he tried to light a cigarette. Slightly balding, moustache and a beer belly protruding over his jeans, he met the partial description that Rosa had given them of Julio. The agent nudged the sheriff and they hurried out the front door to question the man about the sketch.

It was obvious to Colby and Anderson that the man was too drunk to drive. The Mexican was humming along with Enrique Iglesias's "Hero". The music had started up again as soon as they had left the building. As they watched, the man staggered into the grille of a 66 Chevy Impala that had definitely seen better days. Rust covered most of the car and the spots that actually were still covered with paint were so faded that even in the daylight, you wouldn't be able to tell what the original color had been.

The man slapped his hand on the hood of the car and actually blamed it for running into him before gingerly making his way to the driver's door. He fumbled with the keys, and dropped them twice, before he finally opened the car door. As he turned around to slide into the driver's seat, Colby stepped up beside of the door.

"Excuse me…ah…disculpe."

The drunken man turned around to face the agent, swaying to the point that he had to hold onto the car door to remain standing. He stared bleary-eyed at the agent and tried to focus on what he was saying.

"Do you speak English?"

No response.

"Habla usted ingles?"

"I." The man hiccuped. "I….can…speak…Eng lsh." He spoke slowly, slurring his words.

"Good." Colby said as he pulled one of the sketches and his I.D. from his jacket pocket.

"Agent Granger, FBI. I'm looking for this man but I don't know his name. "

He pulled a pen flashlight from another pocket and lit up the sketch so the man could see it clearly." Do you know this man?"

The drunk inhaled quickly and recognition clearly showed in his eyes before he realized what he was doing. He gripped the door frame harder and with a shaking hand wiped at the spittle that had started to leak from the corner of his mouth.

"No…no….I don't know him." He turned to sit down in the car but Colby's words stopped him.

"Yes, you do. I saw it in your eyes." He jerked the man back around to face him. "What is your name?"

"Don't …want…no….trouble. " His voice became louder and he was beginning to panic. "No lo se" he panted, his speech slipping back to his native language. "Dejerne en paz. No lo se." he repeated again, glancing wildly from the agents to the sheriff and his deputy. Nikki and Jeff had followed them out and were standing on the other side of the car.

"What's the matter FBI? Don't you guys have anything better to do than pick on a drunken old man?"

All heads swiveled toward the hood of the car where the five gang members had gathered, the leader standing slightly in front of the others.

"He says that he don't know nothing man and he wants you to leave him alone."

Other people were coming out of the bar now to find out what was going on and a small crowd was forming on the porch behind the gang.

"I know exactly what he said." Colby answered gruffly. "Do you want a part of this?"

Colby's hand hovered over his holster but before the gang leader could respond the Sheriff and the deputy approached the front of the car.

"I'd advise you to mind your own business and go back inside unless you're itching to take a ride down to the station." The sheriff said quietly.

The young man watched him thoughtfully for a moment before his gaze drifted to the two agents standing on each side of the car. He came to a sudden decision when Colby unsnapped his holster.

"No problemo Sheriff." He raised his hands quickly to show that he wasn't holding anything. "You're on your own old man." He called over his shoulder as he turned away and headed back inside the bar.

The Sheriff glanced at the crowd. "Anybody else have anything to say?"

Most of the people began to disburse and wandered back inside the bar but a few curious on lookers remained in the shadows of the porch.

Colby returned his attention back to the drunk. "What's your name?"

"Julio…Julio Ra…mirez." The man stuttered.

"Well, well, we've been looking for you Julio."

"Colby, take a look in the back seat?" Nikki interrupted from the other side of the car. Her own flashlight was trained on something inside the vehicle.

The agent glanced at the back seat and clinched his jaw. "Can you see a name tag?"

"Plain as day." She brought her head up and met his eye. "The name on the tag is Samantha Wilkins."

Simultaneously drawing their weapons, Colby trained his on the suspect while Nikki searched the crowd for any other possible threats. The Sheriff and Deputy followed their lead and drew their weapons as well, each of them stepping backwards to join an agent.

Colby turned the man around and slammed him hard against the car pulling his arms behind is back.

"Cover me." He said to the sheriff as he returned his gun to his holster and grabbed the cuffs from his belt.

He snapped the cuffs around Julio's wrists and jerked him back around until they were face to face. "You're under arrest for the kidnapping of Samantha Wilkins. "

"Kidnapping?" Julio exclaimed, bewildered. "I…I…didn't kidnap nobody."

The agent pointed to the rear seat of the vehicle. "Then how do you explain that?"

"I don't know how it got there." The drunk exclaimed. "I didn't even know that it was there."

Colby ignored him and nodded to his partner. "Go ahead Nikki."

Nikki holstered her gun and pulled a pair of plastic gloves from her pocket and then opened the passenger side door. It was a two door vehicle and she had to push the seat forward so that she could examine the object in the back seat. She bent over and turned over a child's toy back pack and flipped open the top to look inside. A doll and a stuffed toy dog were still waiting for the young girl that had put them there. Nikki closed the flap and checked around the rest of the seat but found no further evidence of the little girl.

She met Colby's eye as she stepped away from the car and shook her head.

Colby shoved Julio aside and grabbed the keys from the front seat where he had dropped them and tossed them to his partner without a word. Nikki caught them one-handed and immediately moved to the rear of the car. She closed her eyes momentarily when the locked clicked open, silently hoping that she wasn't going to find three dead bodies inside.

"You okay?" The deputy asked quietly, joining her before she raised the trunk lid.

"Fine." She said in a clipped voice as she opened the trunk and let out a breath that she hadn't realized she had been holding. Old clothes and shoes littered the trunk, along with a couple of towels and blankets; it looked like someone had been living in the car. She was just turning away when she noticed a roll of plastic underneath one of the blankets. She swallowed thickly; all of the children's bodies had been found wrapped in that type of plastic. Nikki moved to the edge of the trunk where she could see her partner.

"No bodies." She said answering his unspoken question. "But there is a roll of plastic."

Colby got the meaning loud and clear. "Where's the girl!" He shouted at Julio and grabbed him by his shirt, jerking him around until they were face to face.

"What the hell did you do with her?"

Even in his drunken state Julio knew that something big was going down. "Girl? I don't …know nothing about…. a girl." he stuttered in panic.

"Then how did her backpack get in your car?"

Julio wasn't sure what his friend had done but drunk or not, there was no way that he was going to take the blame for it. He shook his head vigorously.

"Not my car….its not my car. I didn't have nothing to do with it." Wide-eyed and fearful he pleaded with Colby to listen to him.

"Whose car is it?"

"Its Rico's car man, I swear." Sweat beaded on his forehead as Julio tried to answer Colby's questions. "If he did something, I didn't know about it. " His eyes flickered to the Sheriff and the female agent, hoping to find some pity. When none was forthcoming, he swallowed several times and looked back at Colby. "Please….it's Rico's."

"This Rico have a last name?" The agent asked coldly.

"Ah…Ricardo Martinez."

"Let's try this again." Colby said holding up the sketch. "Do you know this man?"

Julio lowered his eyes to his shoes and nodded his head slowly. "It is Rico."

Sheriff Anderson spoke up. "Where can we find him?"

"I don't know. " He saw the skeptical look cross the agents face so he rushed to finish his explanation. "Honest, I don't know. He….he loaned me his car and said that he was going to spend a…a… few days with Juan."

The alcohol was gaining control over him and as he sagged against the car his head became too heavy for him to hold up. Julio's eyes were starting to glaze over and his body began to slide down the side of the Chevy. Colby grabbed the Mexican and straightened him back up against the car. He slapped the man's face lightly to bring him back around.

"Julio ……stay with me. Who's Juan?"

The drunken man's eyes fluttered open and they appeared to be cross-eyed as he tried to focus on Colby's face. "Juan…is…his cousin man."

Colby shook him in an effort to keep the man conscious. "What is Juan's last name?"

His eyes fluttered closed again and he swayed against the car. Colby shook him harder.

"Where does he live?"

No answer.

"Julio, what is Juan's last name? I need to know where we can find him."

Still no answer. Julio had tuned into the music radiating through the open windows and had started humming along with the song.

Knowing it was a lost cause Colby motioned for the sheriff to join him and stepped back from the prisoner. "You better have someone read him his rights before he passes out." He left to join Nikki at the rear of the car.

Anderson called Jeff over. "Read him his rights and stay with him."

The deputy's face lit up; this would be his first chance to read the Miranda warning. "Yes sir." He said eagerly as he removed his wallet and pulled out a card. Quickly stuffing his wallet back into his pocket he held the card up until he could read it by the neon light.

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak with an attorney and have him present with you while you are being questioned." he paused and had to grab the man before he slid sideways. "If you cannot afford to hire an attorney, one will be appointed to represent you before any questioning if you wish. Do you understand each of these rights I have explained to you?"

The deputy looked up eager for a response but all he received was a hiccup. It was apparent that Julio was too far gone to hear anything.

The sheriff shook his head as he made his way to join the agents; they would have to read that again after the man was sober.

Nikki closed her phone just as the sheriff joined them.

"David's sending the forensics team as well as a SWAT team. They'll be here in an hour and a half."

"Good. Sheriff we need to contain this crime scene while the prisoner is taken back to your office for interrogation." He glanced over as the deputy was trying to walk the drunken man to the sheriff's patrol car.

"I'll give the state police a call. They can have someone here in twenty minutes, sooner if they have someone in the area." Anderson said as he stepped aside and pulled out his phone.

Nikki and Colby were watching the prisoner's progress and shared a sour look when he suddenly stopped and began to vomit beside the open car door. The deputy cursed as he tried unsuccessfully to move out of his way.

"Man….I don't feel so good." The Mexican mumbled.

"No kidding." The deputy sarcastically replied as he helped the man get inside the car.

"Nikki why don't you go with them and try to sober him up. The sheriff and I will wait here until the state police arrive to contain the scene."

She gave him a sour look but turned toward the car. "You owe me one Granger."

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Walt switched on the light and wearily made his way to the cabin. He had gone out to dinner with some friends and the night had gotten away from him. After changing into his pajamas he sank wearily to the bed but he knew he wouldn't be able to fall asleep right away so he grabbed the remote and switched on the TV set. He switched the channels until he found a late night newscast and watched as the station played the re-caps of the days events. His eyes were just drifting closed when a live broadcast from CalSci University played across the screen.

He propped himself up on one elbow and listened to the broadcast but sat up as the face of Alan Eppes appeared on the screen. His blue eyes widened in recognition, _"I know him too_. " he thought in amazement. When the report was finished he glanced over at the box sitting on his desk. He had only gone through half of it before he had left to join his friends.

Walt threw off the covers and grabbed the box, dumping its remaining contents onto the bed. He began to sift through the clippings and scan them briefly before moving onto the next one. An hour later as he read the last one he sighed in frustration; he had been so sure that he would find the answer to his nagging question in one of those clippings. He grabbed the box again to stuff the papers back inside when he noticed a crumpled up clipping that had been pushed into a corner.

Walt stared in disbelief at the clipping and sat down on the edge of the bed, carefully smoothing out the wrinkles so it was easier for him to read the old news article.

"Well, I'll be dammed." he mumbled.

TBC


	17. Chapter 17

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Thank you for your continued support of this story.

Chapter 17:

A night wind rose in the desert and blew east across the Mojave powering the giant blades of the solar wind mills as it passed them by, building in strength as it coursed through the cities of Victorville and Hespeira. It roared past an old farm house, blasting it with sand and rattling the screen door as it rippled through the farmer's fields on its way to the mountains. The wind blew past the tattered remains of a rattlesnake and whipped around the Joshua trees forcing a pair of red tail hawks to hunker down in their nest as the top of the tree swayed dangerously to and fro in the strong breeze. It blew over carefully laid stones, covering some of them with sand, before it continued on its journey across the High Desert and whipped through the foothills. As if it were a living entity it snaked its way around the rocks and sagebrush, nearly obliterating a small fire before roaring off to cross the mountains.

Charlie shivered as the cool breeze tossed his curls around but his immediate concern was for the fire. He quickly pulled his hands from his jacket pockets and tried desperately to save the few remaining flames from flickering out altogether but it was to no avail because the tail end of the breeze skirted the rocks and plunged him into sudden darkness. They had just lost their only protection from the cool night air and the desert wildlife.

"Crap." He muttered and blinked his eyes rapidly as he peered into the darkness. The blackness was not complete though, a number of red embers still burned in a few remaining pieces of the firewood, casting off an eerie red glow that seemed to intensify the darkness that enveloped the pitch-black cave.

Charlie dropped to his knees and felt blindly around the cave floor, trying to find the bag that contained the matches. Straining his eyes to see through the darkness, he slowly inched his way across the cool, sandy soil. His hand closed over one of the bags and he sat back on his heels, anxiously rummaging through the contents for the matches. It didn't take him long to realize that he had the wrong bag and hastily tossed it aside as he nervously renewed his search. The young professor was becoming more desperate by the second and he was just about to call out to his brother when something made him glance toward the opening of the cave.

Moonlight dimly illuminated the area outside the cave and for just a moment, he thought he caught sight of a shadowy form crossing in front of the entrance but even though he continued to stare at the opening it didn't reappear.

"_Was it really there or did I imagine it_?" he muttered breathlessly to himself. "_It could have been the shadows of the clouds as they passed in front of the moon. "_

Silence had once again enveloped the desert floor but instead of bringing him peace of mind, the soundless desert brought with it a feeling of uneasiness. The hair rose up on his forearms and the back of his neck and although he couldn't explain it he suddenly had the sense that they were no longer alone. Charlie glanced behind him, Don and Sammy were back there somewhere and he quietly started to inch his way toward them but a noise from outside stopped him in his tracks and he swallowed hard before switching directions and moving back toward the front of the cave.

As he inched his way toward the opening his knee hit the pile of unused wood they had gathered earlier and his hand instinctively closed around one of them. Just short of the entrance, he dropped to a crouch and leaned against the solid wall of the cave before peering around its edge. Charlie gazed into the darkness, not even aware that he was holding his breath, so intent on the shadows in front of him that he actually jumped when Don snorted in his sleep. He almost laughed out loud in relief as he released a shaky breath and pushed an errant curl out of his eyes with a shaky hand, but the laughter stuck in his throat when his ears picked up a rustling noise from somewhere close by.

Charlie's head swiveled in search of the noise; he had felt no wind this time and couldn't account for the sudden movement of the leaves. The moon came out from behind the clouds bathing the small area with more light, making it easier for him to distinguish the objects around him. The sand was a pale white in the faint moonlight and he could no longer distinguish colors; they had all faded into dappled shadows of blacks and grays.

The young man's gaze drifted downward, settling on the bottom of a bush twenty feet from the opening. Charlie narrowed his eyes and focused on the moonlight shining between the lower branches.

"_Wait. What is that?" _He muttered under his breath and froze as something moved and blocked the light from shining through a gap between one of the branches. Another bush rustled and he brought his head up, eyes searching desperately to find the cause.

More movement and he got the sense that the cave was being surrounded by something. Slowly the shadows began to morph into recognizable forms of bushes and rocks but he had yet to catch a glimpse of the elusive creatures that were moving around them.

"_More than one of them." _Charlie thought fearfully and his eyes widened as a horrifying thought occurred to him. "_Oh, God! What if the Mexicans had caught up with them. " _

Gripping the piece of wood tightly in his hand, he rose slowly to his feet and backed further into the cave_. _He didn't stop until the back of his heels brushed against his brother's leg; keeping his eyes glued to the entrance he nudged Don's foot with his shoe.

"Donnie!" He whispered hoarsely without taking his eyes off of the opening; trying to make his voice loud enough to wake up Don but not the little girl.

His brother's soft snores broke off suddenly but Don didn't wake up. Charlie kicked the agents foot harder and was about to call out again when he glanced toward the entrance and noticed a few shadows near the opening that hadn't been there before.

He took a few steps forward in an effort to get a clearer view but the sight that greeted him sent his heart racing in terror. With a shout he stumbled backwards and almost tripped over his brother's sleeping form.

Don sat up suddenly at Charlie's shout and frantically searched around for his brother. Realizing immediately that the fire had gone out he came to his knees in the darkness grasping the pole that he had kept by his side.

"Charlie!" he called out anxiously just as his brother's hand landed blindly on the top of his head.

"What's going…? "

"Donnie!" Charlie hissed desperately cutting him off. "Wake up!"

"I am awake. Now tell me what's going on." He said, grabbing Charlie's arm and pulling himself up.

"Move slowly." Charlie whispered urgently. "Don't make any sudden movements!"

Side by side they crept closer to the entrance and cautiously peered outside.

"Shit! " Don muttered with a quick intake of his breath.

A large coyote padded to a stop ten feet from the entrance to the cave and lowered its head, emitting a low guttural growl. Its feral eyes tracked their movements closely and reflected the glowing embers from the charred wood.

Even Don couldn't suppress a shudder as he stared at the red glowing eyes of the animal; it was as if the devil himself had come to collect their souls. He felt Charlie shudder beside of him and knew that his brother was feeling the same sense of evil that he was feeling. The agent caught movement out of the corner of his eye and watched with trepidation as two more of the animals came into view.

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David tapped a few keys on his laptop and a list of registered Mexican immigrants appeared. All of them either had Juan as a first name or a middle name but none of them matched the sketch that Colby had sent them. The facial recognition software was also coming up empty which meant that Juan was probably an illegal immigrant and had avoided any arrests since he had been in the country. He rubbed at his face tiredly and then narrowed the search to only those immigrants known to be in San Bernardino County. That narrowed their list to sixty eight men; Juan was a pretty common name among the immigrants.

Liz came up behind David and peered over his shoulder at the screen on his laptop. "Do we have anything on this Ricardo Martinez?"

"Nothing." David tilted his head and looked around. "Did Mexico have anything on him? "

"Not offhand. They're going to do a search and get back to me." She shook her head and scoffed. "Probably won't hear anything until tomorrow."

"Colby just called with the VIN number from Martinez's car. I'm running it through the records now but I have a feeling it's going to be another dead end. "

Liz glanced at the empty desk across the room. "What happened to Amita and Larry?"

David glanced over at the open laptop on the desk, lights flashing rapidly even though no one was there to tap any keys. "They went back to the Craftsman to check on Alan and get a few hours of sleep. They're running some kind of program in Charlie's laptop that should tell us what he was working on, until then there isn't much else that they can do." He glanced at his watch. "Amita said it would take a couple of hours to run and that they'll be back by four o'clock."

"We might be able to narrow this down." Liz mused. "What if the truck doesn't belong to Juan but is registered under someone else's name. We could have the state police go to the homes of the registered owners and verify if the trucks are on the property. "

David stood up and stretched. "How many vehicles are we talking here?"

"There are two hundred registered Nissan Titan's in San Bernardino County." She answered tiredly.

David's eyebrows rose up in surprise. "There must be some way to narrow it down besides a visit to each owner. What if we do a search on the owners first and see if any of them have a record?"

"I guess that would be a better starting point." Liz agreed as she tapped the keys. Sinclair's laptop beeped and she gave it a quick glance. "David, it looks like you have an answer on the VIN number. "

The agent bent over and clicked on the message. After a few minutes he straightened up and met her eye. "Just like I thought a dead end." He took a sip of coffee before filling her in. "The Impala was stolen from an elderly couple seven months ago in San Diego."

Liz sighed heavily. "Then it's back to the Nissan truck. "

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"Rico. Rico!" Juan impatiently shoved his cousin's shoulder. "Wake up. We have to leave soon."

The only response he got out of the man was a mumbled curse as he rolled over and pulled the blanket up over his head. Almost immediately loud snores emanated from beneath the covers.

"Rico!!" Juan roared, and jerked the blankets from the sleeping man. "Get the hell up. I said we're leaving!"

This time the older man opened his eyes and propped himself up on his elbows. He blearily looked up at his angry cousin and blinked his eyes, trying to focus them.

"What's wrong with you man?" Rico whined, glancing at the darkened window. "It's only two o'clock, its not even daylight yet."

"It will be in a few hours and I want to be at the farm as soon as the sun rises, so get up and get ready!" Juan sniffed at the air in disgust and glared at the older man. "And go take a shower. You stink!"

Rico stared at him through hooded eyes as he climbed out of bed. "You don't have to insult me."

"I'm not sharing the cab with you if you still smell like that. Take a shower or ride in the truck bed. The choice is yours."

Grumbling under his breath, Rico headed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

Juan went into his own bedroom and threw a small suitcase on the bed, pausing to unzip it before going over to his closet. Angrily, he jerked shirts and pants from the hangers and threw them into the open bag on the bed. The Mexican crossed the room to a chest of drawers and gathered a handful of underwear and socks and tossed them unceremoniously into the suitcase.

Finally, he knelt down on the floor and ran his hand under the bottom of one of the dresser drawers. Smiling smugly to himself, he jerked off the tape that was holding a hand gun strapped to the bottom of the drawer. Keeping a cautious eye on the bathroom door, he checked to make sure that it was loaded and then stuffed it into the waistband of his jeans; Rico didn't have to know about this gun until the time was right. He opened another drawer and gathered up the ammunition for the gun and extra shells for his rifle. Stuffing them in his jacket pocket he grabbed the suitcase and headed for the door. Juan paused in the doorway and gave the room a second glance before switching off the light and making his way to the living room. He stacked his things near the door, pausing long enough to peer out of the window pane to make certain that no one was waiting for them outside. Satisfied that they were still in the clear, he closed the curtain and switched on the TV.

The shower was still running so he went to the kitchen to fix himself a cup of coffee. Roaches scurried off to the shadows as he flicked on the light and made his way toward the cupboards. While the coffee was brewing he helped himself to a cold slice of pizza that was lying in an open box on the counter top. He grabbed another slice when the coffee was finished and shuffled out to the living room. Chavez set the cup down and grabbed the remote, switching channels while he finished off the pizza.

Juan surfed through the channels until a newscast caught his eye; it was about the missing agent and his brother. He leaned forward, watching the broadcast intently and noted with satisfaction that his plan was still working as a video of the Angeles Crest appeared on the screen.

"Dumb Fed's. " He gloated and took another sip of coffee. The broadcast switched to the campus at CalSci and the video feed of the candle light vigil. The cameraman zoomed in on Alan and Samantha's parents while the reporter explained who they were.

"Some genius.' he said sarcastically. "He can't be that smart or he wouldn't be out there in the desert." He leaned back on the couch and stretched out his legs, propping his feet up on the coffee table. His lips turned upward in a sneer as another close up of Alan played across the screen. "You can stay out there all night old man and it ain't going to make one bit of difference." Juan spoke out loud as if Alan could hear his words. "Because as soon as the sun comes up in the morning I'm going to kill them both and hide their bodies in a place that no one will ever be able to find them."

Juan took another sip of his coffee and glowered at the bathroom door.

"_Rico." _He thought darkly. If it wasn't for Rico, he would be spending the night with a beautiful redhead that he had met in town. A redhead that not only stirred his passion but whose husband could also provide him with a large monetary gain. And now, because of Rico, he was going to have to go back to Mexico for a few months until the disappearance of the FBI agents died down. He vowed that his cousin would not put him in this position again and as soon as the agents were out of the way, he was going to deal with Rico.

Licking his fingers, he rose from the couch and headed back out to the kitchen. Juan's temper flared as he thought of the predicament that his cousin had gotten him involved in and in anger he banged on the bathroom door.

"Hurry up Rico!" He shouted at the closed door.

As he stepped onto the kitchen tile he felt something crunch under his foot and he paused to look down at it. "Stupid roach." he muttered. Man, he hated those bugs, almost as much as he hated the Eppes brothers and he made it a point to squash several more as he refilled his cup and grabbed another slice of pizza before heading back out to the living room.

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"Is he sober yet?" Colby asked as soon as he closed the conference room door behind him. It had taken the state police forty minutes to get to the crime scene and he and the sheriff had just arrived back at the station.

Nikki was sitting on the edge of the table with her arms crossed and looked up just as the sheriff and the deputy entered behind her partner.

Julio was sitting at the conference table with his head in his hands and three empty Styrofoam coffee cups in front of him. He had a blanket wrapped tightly around himself and Colby could see puddles of water pooling beneath the man's chair.

The Mexican winced when the door closed and he glared at the sheriff and his deputy. "Not so loud man. My head is pounding like a drum." he whined and then pointed an accusing finger at Nikki. "She…she tried to kill me."

"Is that right?" Colby asked, arching his eyebrows at his partner as he turned a chair around and sat down. He crossed his arms over the top of the chair and rested his chin on them. "Exactly how did she try to kill you? "

"She…she tried to drown me…in the sink" he stammered, pulling the blanket tighter.

"He was washing his face and just happened to dunk his head in the water. " Nikki explained with a shrug. "It's not my fault that he was so drunk that he couldn't hold onto the sink. " She arched an eyebrow at him. "You did say to sober him up, remember?"

"That I did. " Colby said with a chuckle. "Tell you what Julio, you tell me what I want to know and I'll get you some dry clothes and a nice cell where it's peaceful and quiet. "

The sheriff raised a hand to stop Julio from answering. "Jeff, did you read him his rights again?"

"Oh, yes sir," The deputy answered right away. "I took care of that as soon as Julio was," he cleared his throat, "out of the sink."

Colby asked again. "Are you ready to answer my questions now?"

"What do you want from me man?" Julio whined. "I already told you about Rico."

"I want to you to tell me Juan's last name and where I can find him. "

The Mexicans eyes dropped to his coffee cup and he muttered. "Juan has a bad temper man, even Rico says so."

"Tell us where to find him and you won't have to worry about him anymore." Colby leaned forward and studied the Mexican silently for a minute and decided to try another approach.

"Did Rico ever tell you why he had that tattoo put on his arm?'

"Si…si." he eagerly answered, slipping back momentarily to his native language. "Rico, he likes the spider's man. He says they are like him because they like to hide in the shadows and then they jump out to get you."

"Did he tell you where he got the tattoo?"

Julio nodded his head. "In Nogales but he had to draw it for them because they didn't have anything like that one."

"Did Rico ever tell you why he is like the spider? " Colby asked, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"No." Julio shrugged. "He just likes spider's man. That's all."

Colby hadn't noticed when the deputy had left the room but he was grateful when he returned bearing a tray of Styrofoam cups filled with coffee. The agent took a sip and eyed the Mexican over the rim of his cup. It was obvious that Julio wasn't involved in the kidnappings and that Rico was just his drinking buddy. "_Time to hit the man with the truth_." he thought as he sat his cup down and crossed his arms over the chair again.

"Julio, do you know why Rico said that he was like a spider?"

The Mexican looked up as a look of surprise crossed his face and shook his head from side to side…..he hadn't been expecting that question.

"Your friend is a rapist and a killer. He waits in the shadows, just like a spider does, so he can grab little girls." his voice hardened, "and then he rapes and kills them."

Horrified, Julio brought a trembling hand up to cover his mouth, his eyes glued to the agent.

"Two days ago he kidnapped a five year old girl and we're trying to find her before its too late."

Ramirez swallowed and looked away. "Rico wouldn't….." his voice trailed off.

'Julio, that toy backpack we found in the car belonged to the little girl that was kidnapped."

"Rico could have just found it." Julio said softly, as if he were trying to convince himself that it was true.

"But you don't really believe that do you?" The agent asked, watching the man's reactions closely. Colby saw him weakening; now was the time to hit him with the rest of it. "We also have evidence that he kidnapped an FBI agent and one of our consultants."

Julio's eyes widened in fear and he visibly paled at Colby's next words.

"If you don't help us find Rico and Juan before they kill them, then I will charge you with conspiracy to commit murder."

Nikki crossed the floor to stand behind Julio's chair. "Do you know what you get for killing a federal agent?' She leaned over and whispered in his ear. "That will get you a needle in the arm Julio." Nikki straightened up again and exchanged glances with Colby before she walked around to stand behind her partner.

Julio bowed his head and looked down at his trembling hands; it wasn't the alcohol that was causing him to shake now. He swallowed hard and lifted his coffee cup to take a sip but even though he was holding the cup with both hands he couldn't prevent himself from sloshing the hot liquid over the rim and he had to set it down quickly.

Colby set his jaw. "Last chance Julio. What is Juan's last name and where can we find him?"

"Chavez…" Ramirez mumbled almost inaudibly and then cleared his throat and repeated it louder. "Chavez. I think that he rents a house somewhere on Henderson.… in.....in...Victorville.

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"I didn't think coyotes were aggressive around humans." Charlie said nervously, keeping his eyes glued to the coyotes.

"Me either." Don spoke quietly, trying not to excite the animals any further. "It doesn't make any sense; they're supposed to run away if you confront them."

"I don't think they intend to run away." Charlie added unnecessarily.

"Yeah, I got that part Charlie."

Don scanned the area outside of the opening and saw movement behind the three coyotes that had approached the entrance.

"There are at least three more of them under the bushes….we've got the whole damn pack out here." He took a steadying breath. "What happened to the fire?"

"Wind." Charlie answered tersely.

"We need to get that fire going again." The agent said uneasily.

"Yeah, I know but I couldn't find the matches."

"They're in my jacket pocket." Don muttered as he shifted his stance to get a better grip on the pole.

"That solves one problem." Charlie said, surprised that his words had come out so calmly "What do we do about them?"

A total of six coyotes were now facing the entrance of the cave. They faced the brothers with their heads down, lips pulled back in a vicious snarl as their long sharp teeth glinted omniously in the moonlight.

"We can try making a lot of noise and run toward them….that's supposed to scare them off." Don suggested uncertainly.

"Run toward them?" Charlie managed to squeak out but tightened his grip on the piece of wood that he was holding. He took a deep breath to calm himself and then added. "On your mark then."

"Really?" Don asked surprised. "I was hoping that you would come up with a better idea. "

"I've got nothing." Charlie answered, struggling to find his voice. "Its all yours bro."

"Okay…let's do it." Don said grimly.

As one they began to yell and scream, waving their arms over their heads as they ran over the charred remains of the fire and out into the clearing.

At first a few of the coyotes dropped back but after a few minutes it became apparent that the pack wasn't leaving and soon the ones that had fallen back began to move forward to join the others.

"I don't get it." Charlie panted as they were forced to back up themselves. "What do they want?"

A thought suddenly occurred to Don. "Earlier tonight I thought I heard puppies crying. I bet they have a den close by."

"They see us as a threat." Charlie stated breathlessly as the pack began to converge on them.

A sudden cry emanated from the cave sending a wave of fear through both brothers.

"Uncle Chawle! Uncle Donnie!" Samantha had awakened alone in the cold, dark cave.

Desperately Don called out to her. "Sammy, stay in the cave! Cover yourself with the blanket and don't come out until we tell you!"

The large coyote growled deep in his throat and the sound was taken up by the others.

"Don't come out Sammy!" Charlie added urgently, raising his voice to be heard over the menacing rumble. "Do what Uncle Do….…."

"Charlie!"

TBC


	18. Chapter 18

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Lots of action coming up in the next few chapters so they will move pretty fast. There are only five, possibly six, chapters left. I hope that you enjoy them and as always, I truly appreciate your reviews. Thank you.

Chapter 18:

Alan leaned back in his chair and gazed at the stars above him, desperately seeking that one star he could make his wish on. He had left the candlelight vigil after the newscaster had become intrusive and had escaped from the media with Ray's help

Now he sat alone in the dark, trying to hide from the rest of the world, unable to maintain the façade of being strong any longer. His emotions were taking control of him; fear and doubt were numbing his mind and with each passing hour hope was drifting away from him.

Alan had escaped to the isolation of his back yard when he could no longer endure the ringing of the telephone. Relatives, friends and acquaintances, along with the media had driven him into hiding. He had left the living room window open, however, so that he could hear any messages that were left, just in case one of the callers happened to be one of his sons. He had his cell phone in his shirt pocket for the same reason; just in case Don or Charlie found some way to get to a phone and couldn't reach him on the house phone or in case David needed to get in touch with him.

The elder man squinted at his watch through the dim light that radiated out of the living room window and released a low moan of frustration when he realized that it was only 2:00 a.m. His head fell forward and he pressed his hands against the sides of his head as if he could squeeze out the visions running through his brain. After a moment, Alan's hands dropped listlessly to his lap and he closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the chair. His tortured mind was imagining the most horrendous things and no matter how hard he tried, terrible visions continuously paraded through his mind like someone was hitting the replay button on a video recorder. Horrific images of his sons lying dead along some lonely highway or buried somewhere that they would never be found. The thought of living the rest of his life without his sons, without ever knowing what happened to them filled him with terror and he felt as if the fear was literally ripping him to pieces.

Alan started to breathe heavily as the oppressive feeling overwhelmed him. He felt like he was suffocating; the air became close and stifling. He had to stop this, he told himself, none of it was true; Don and Charlie were alive until he saw them dead with his own two eyes. He set his jaw and stubbornly kept repeating that thought over and over again until his breathing began to return to its normal rhythm.

His hands closed tightly around a small picture frame. Alan didn't need light to see the photograph in the frame; the picture was ingrained in his mind. It was a recent photograph taken on his last birthday. His sons had taken him out for dinner to celebrate and he had asked the waiter to take the picture. Alan closed his eyes and saw the event clearly in his mind's eye. He was sitting in a chair near the middle of the table with Don seated on his right and Charlie on his left. Both of them had moved their chairs closer so that they could wrap an arm around his shoulders and just before the waiter had snapped the picture, Don had told them a joke and all three had burst into laughter. It was one of Alan's favorite pictures and now it had also become his lifeline.

Suddenly, the bright glow of headlights disturbed the darkness of the backyard as a car pulled into the driveway and came to a stop. His breathing quickened again as he suddenly became terrified of what news someone could be bringing to him at this late hour. Alan wiped the sweat from his brow with a trembling hand while he waited in silence, his body tense with fear and he strained to hear every sound that emanated from the front of the house.

The headlights went out, the engine was turned off and he heard two car doors slam shut. Alan held his breath and listened as two people approached the front door.

"_Two…two people." _he thought and he started to rise out of his chair as hope suddenly flared in his heart. "_It might be Donnie and Charlie!"_

His hope was short-lived however when he heard a knock on the front door and a female voice called out his name.

"Alan? Alan?"

A sob escaped Alan's throat as he sank back down in the chair and wrapped his arms around himself. It wasn't that he didn't want to see her; it was just that the need to hear his son's voices was so strong that it was like a physical blow to his chest when he discovered that it wasn't them.

"Alan have you been out here all night?" Larry asked with concern.

They had found him and he raised his head slowly, trying to compose himself. He coughed, clearing his throat. "Just for a little while."

Amita took his hand. "You're so cold" she said worriedly. "Please come inside and sit with us."

Alan looked into her red rimmed eyes and distantly wondered how she was holding together and bitterly answered his own question. "_Of course, she's keeping it together because she's doing something to help find them_. "

"Okay….sure. " He said, clutching the small photograph in his hand as he stood up and shuffled slowly into the house with Amita and Larry hovering close by.

Amita insisted that he sit on the couch and went to fix them some tea while Larry grabbed an afghan to cover him. He was too numb with his fear to resist their kindly administrations so he slipped off his shoes and pulled his legs up onto the sofa to tuck his feet beneath the afghan.

"I thought that you would be at the FBI all night." Alan said quietly.

Larry sat down heavily in a chair and leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. He put his face in his hands and rubbed his temples before answering.

"We are running Charlie's data through a different algorithm in hopes of finding the anomaly that he was working on." He sighed. "The computer should finish up around four o'clock, so we will be heading back at that time."

"Try some of this Alan." Amita said interrupting them as she carried in a tray bearing three cups of tea. She handed one to him and watched in concern as he took a sip. Larry picked up his cup and finally she sat down and took a sip of her own tea.

"This is very nice. Thank you." Alan said as he took another sip.

Amita shared a questioning look with Larry before turning to Alan. "Would you like to come with us when we go back to the FBI office?" Seeing his hesitation, she added. "There is some data that you could help us go through. It would be a big help to us."

"She's right Alan." Larry backed her up. "We really could use your help."

Hope flared in Alan's eyes; he needed to do something to help find his sons. He glanced from Larry to Amita and then back again. "If you're sure that I won't be in the way? That would be a lot easier than just sitting here waiting to hear some news."

Amita smiled at him. "It's settled then but I think we should all try and get a couple of hours sleep."

Alan glanced up the stairway thoughtfully. "I think I'll just sleep down here."

"Actually, I don't want to sleep upstairs either." Amita confessed. "I'll run up and get some pillows and blankets and we can camp out down here. Would that be okay Alan?"

"I think that is a great idea." Alan agreed with a small smile.

Amita left to gather the bedding and returned a few minutes later to find that Alan had moved to one of the chairs.

"Why don't you take the couch dear and Larry and I will take the lounge chairs." When she started to protest he added. "This chair is better for my back anyway." He grabbed a blanket and spread it out over his legs, ending any further argument over the matter. "We'd better get some sleep."

"Good idea." Larry added as he spread his own blanket over himself.

Amita set the alarm clock on the table next to the couch and switched off the light. As silence descended over the craftsman, Alan held tightly to his lifeline and in his mind relieved the moment when the photograph was taken.

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"Don't come out Sammy!" Charlie added urgently, raising his voice to be heard over the menacing rumble. "Do what Uncle Do….."

His sentence ended in a cry of pain when a coyote darted out of the shadows and tried to bite him just above his knee. Charlie moved at the first sign of pressure throwing the animal off balance but as it tried to turn away one of its long canine teeth became entangled in his jeans and in the insuring struggle, the tooth not only sliced through his jeans but his thigh as well.

Suddenly a searing pain ran up his leg and he cried out in agony as he struggled to push the animal away from him. Finally, with an agonizing yell he slammed the piece of wood against the animal's skull and almost sobbed with relief as it pulled away; ripping his jeans further in its haste to escape. Charlie staggered sideways but somehow managed to keep his balance despite the excruciating pain that was radiating from the gash. He hobbled around in a circle, trying to keep moving so that he wouldn't be such an easy target. He could feel blood flowing down his leg but he couldn't take the time to dealt with it; two of the beasts were back and were circling around him, getting ready for another attack.

Charlie broke out in a cold sweat, blinking his eyes rapidly to clear his vision, as he tried desperately to keep them both in view. One of them drifted back into the shadows while the other moved in closer.

"_Not again_!" he thought grimly. "_Not this time! " _

He raised the stick to fend the animal off and out of the corner of his eye noticed the other one sneaking in from the side. With a swing born out of desperation, he pivoted on his good leg and swung the wood in an arc, hitting first one animal and then the other. With twin yelps they stumbled unsteadily back into the shadows.

Charlie stumbled backwards, losing his balance and falling to his knees. An agonized cry tore from his lips when he landed on his injured leg but despite the pain he struggled to regain his feet before they attacked again. He was just straightening up when one of the coyotes darted out of the shadows and lunged for him, grabbing his forearm in its mouth. Charlie was quicker this time and jerked his arm away before the beast could close its jaws completely but as he pulled away the animals teeth scraped his forearm and shredded the lower part of his sleeve.

Blood ran down his arm dripping on the stick that he still clutched tightly in his fist. Now that his arm was free he raised the stick and swung at the coyote but it was too fast and scurried out of his reach, coming to a halt a few feet from him, snarling and waiting for another opportunity to charge again. He felt a nip at his heel and turned just as another one bolted back to the edge of the shadows.

Charlie glanced from one to the other; so that was their game. They were using a tag-team strategy against him; a sort of relay attack, while one distracted the prey, the other one would attack. They were smart, very smart, and apparently the nickname of "wily coyote" had been well earned.

In a panic he scanned the shadows for his brother. "_Where was he? What had happened _to _him? " _

The young professor backed up a little to give himself a better vantage point and could see the two coyotes that he had hit earlier staggering near the edge of the clearing, a third one was lying motionless not far from the cave entrance.

"_Don must have got that one_." he thought as he frantically searched through the shadows for his brother. "Don!" he yelled and turned toward two dark shadows rolling on the ground.

"Hold on! I'm ….I'm…coming." he stammered and stumbled toward the shadows, only to come to a halt as the tag-team duo returned and began to circle around him; teeth bared and hackles raised.

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Colby and Nikki scanned the darkened street for signs of a lookout but so far the only movement they had seen was a pair of coyotes going through the local's garbage. This close to the Mojave they were becoming a common sight and with man encroaching on their habitat, the coyote was becoming more at ease around humans and adapting their lifestyle to one that included humans.

Both of the animals suddenly raised their heads turning toward them and Colby marveled at the coyote's ability to sense their presence. With their sharp eyesight, keen hearing and keen sense of smell, they had detected them in less than a minute. As one, both animals suddenly loped away and disappeared from view.

Colby glanced up at the moon as a cloud passed over it, plunging them into darkness. They weren't totally in the dark, though, there were several street lights that were still operational. This section of Henderson was in the process of being rezoned for commercial use and most of the old houses had already been demolished. The street itself was in pretty bad condition making walking a hazard on a bright sunny day, let alone a dark night so Colby's team had to move ahead cautiously. There were other reasons for being cautious too, mainly the element of surprise. They all stood a better chance of surviving the assault if they could avoid a firefight and that especially included any hostages that might be found in the house.

The members of the insurgent team were ahead of them and Colby picked out a few of their shadows as they moved along the dark street to get into position. The moon came out from behind the clouds, flooding the dark street with moonlight. This was both good and bad, he reflected, as he leaned around a cement wall to get a better view of the house. Good, because they could see their way clearer; bad, if there was someone keeping an eye on the road.

Once they had determined Juan's last name the agents had moved swiftly. The Sheriff was already familiar with the street and surrounding area so within an hour of finding out his identity they were moving into position to take them down and hopefully rescue Don, Charlie and the little girl.

The small house that Chavez rented was at the end of Henderson Street, a side street off of the main road through Victorville. It was situated near an abandoned garage and several small houses. The garage looked as if it were going to fall down at any moment and a yellow tape encircled the old building to prevent anyone from entering the dilapidated structure.

"Team two in position." A male voice reported.

Colby pressed the button on his radio and asked quietly. "Has anyone seen any movement?"

'Negative. There are lights on in three of the rooms but no sign of any movement. They're either asleep or they're not there. Over."

"Any sign of the truck?"

A deeper voice responded. "Negative."

"Roger that." Colby said, shifting his position to face his partner.

"I don't like it." He muttered softly. "I'm beginning to have a bad feeling about this." He adjusted his Kevlar vest and checked the ammo in his gun unnecessarily.

"You think we're too late?" She asked worriedly.

"Yeah. I'm starting to get that feeling but there's only one way to find out. Come on."

They hurried forward in a crouch, staying in the shadows as much as possible.

Colby had tactical command and ordered the assault team forward until they were within thirty feet of the door. Four members of the SWAT team were already in position at the rear of the house, standing by for the go ahead signal.

The agents squatted behind a bush with Paul Kinsey, the team leader. They quietly reviewed their strategy before taking position. Entry would be made simultaneously through the front and rear doors of the house and the SWAT team would enter first on Colby's signal.

Kinsey was carrying a battering ram and moved quietly to the front door. He pulled the ram back and held position, waiting for the signal.

"On my count of three." The agent spoke softly and held up three fingers. He silently counted down by closing his fingers and when all were down he whispered. "Execute."

The battering ram made a resounding bang as it came in contact with the old wooden door. It splintered and opened, dangling from its hinges as the team surged forward.

"F B I."

Nikki and Colby shouted as they made entrance to the house. Guns drawn they checked out the rooms along with the team and voices yelling "clear" resounded around the small house.

It was over in a matter of minutes; encountering no opposition the team quickly moved through the structure and after a more thorough search, declared it clear of any hostiles.

Colby turned to the SWAT leader. "Order your men to stand down. We're too late, they've already gone. Have them take up positions along the street in case they return."

With a quick nod of his head, Kinsey trotted for the door deploying his men to their new positions via his headset.

"Check this out." Nikki called from one of the bedrooms.

Colby hurried over and glanced around the room. The bed was unmade, the closet door was ajar and several dresser drawers were hanging open.

"They left in a hurry."

"Yeah it sure looks that way." Nikki agreed, pulling out her cell phone. "This is Betancourt. You guys can come up now." she closed her cell and stuffed it back in her pocket before turning to her partner. "Forensics is on its way. Maybe they can find something that will tell us where they've gone."

"Damn it!" Colby exploded. "It's like these guys are two steps ahead of us at every turn. Where the hell are we supposed to look now?"

Not expecting an answer he strode angrily from the room, nearly colliding with a member of the forensics team as he stormed through the open door.

Nikki caught up with him outside, pacing up and down in front of the house and as she came up alongside of him she realized he had a phone to his ear.

"David. Yeah, we're at the house. No. They've already gone." Frustrated, he ran his hand through his hair. "I don't know man…where do we go from here?"

Nikki swallowed hard and turned away, an uneasy feeling forming in the pit of her stomach. She gazed up at the moon and surreptitiously wiped at the tears in her eyes.

"_Where did they go from here?" _she thought despondently.

Sheriff Anderson and his deputy had been allowed to go along but not make entry until the house was cleared. They walked toward the house and spotted the agents standing out front.

"There they are." Jeff said and eagerly moved forward.

Anderson stopped and put a hand on his shoulder. "Let's give them a few minutes son."

"Why? What's wrong?" the young deputy asked in surprise.

The sheriff rubbed his chin thoughtfully and observed the two agents. "I don't think things went as they planned Jeff. Why don't we give them a few minutes to work it out?"

It wouldn't hurt to give them a few minutes to pull themselves together. The sheriff knew how hard it was to lose a team member and he had a feeling that the two agents had a close relationship with their SAC and his brother and that they might have just lost their only chance of finding them.

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"Charlie!"

Don called out anxiously when his brother cried out in pain but he didn't have time to go to his aid. The large coyote was hurtling toward him at the moment and as he swung the pole around to hit the animal he felt a sharp pain in his ankle. He reversed the pole and jammed the end down on the head of the coyote that was trying to bite him. With a yelp it released him and staggered a few feet before collapsing to the ground.

Unfortunately for Don, the distraction gave the large coyote time to close the distance and he only had enough time to grip the pole in both hands as the animal leaped through the air, hitting him full in the chest and knocking him to the ground, its fangs tearing at his throat.

Desperately the agent pushed the pole up between the coyote's jaws forcing it to bite the stick as he tried to push it away. The beast was strong; fifty pounds of pure muscle and sinew, powerful jaws, sharp teeth and claws with only one thing on its mind; to kill him. If Don had been given a chance he could have shown the animal that he meant it no harm, that they were only seeking protection themselves but there was no negotiation here; only a battle for survival, and only one of them was going to leave the clearing alive.

The constant flow of drool trickling from the animals mouth not only made him gag but was also oozing onto the pole making it slippery and harder to grasp. Suddenly his hand slipped and the coyote surged forward; its teeth only inches from his face. Frantically, Don moved his head to the side but not before its razor sharp claws sliced the left side of his temple, missing his eye by only inches.

Don heard a crack and watched in horror as the pole began to splinter and break apart. He swallowed hard with the realization that the stick was about to be bitten in half, giving the coyote the opening that it needed.

Don's eyes were locked on the mass of teeth that were getting closer and closer and knew that he was only going to get one chance. In a desperate attempt to shake the coyote loose he pulled his legs up and pressed his feet firmly under the animal's chest just as the pole snapped. His survival instinct kicked in and with a massive burst of energy Don's legs thrust upwards, sending the coyote flying head over heels; slamming into the hillside with a loud thump. The creature let out one shrill yelp before it rolled to the bottom of the ridge, landing in the bushes near the cave entrance.

Don rose shakily to his feet and immediately looked around for his brother. Charlie was on his feet, staggering, hurt and in imminent danger of being attacked by two of the coyotes.

The agent was still holding a piece of the pole in his hand so he waved it around in the air as he stumbled over to join his brother. At his approach the two coyotes that had been circling Charlie loped off to join the others that were prowling near the edge of the clearing. Suddenly they erupted into shrill yelps and barks working themselves into a frenzied state.

"Don, are you okay? " Charlie gasped out, warily watching the remaining coyotes.

"Yeah." Don panted hoarsely. "We've got to get back in the cave and light the fire…it's our only chance."

Knowing that the odds were against them in another attack, the brothers made a hasty retreat for the cave. The blackness of the cave blinded them but Charlie went from memory and fell to his knees beside the firewood. Fueled by terror he quickly stacked a pile of wood across the opening of the cave while Don anxiously searched through his pockets for the matches.

Charlie panted and peered out at the moonlit clearing trying to distinguish the coyotes from the bushes and the rocks. With a trembling hand he pushed a few curls from his eyes and watched for any sign of the animals. He could hear them, growling and barking but couldn't see them; they were lurking in the shadows near the bushes and rocks.

Suddenly he saw a flurry of movement and his eyes widened as the coyotes slowly approached the cave.

"Don!" he gasped. "Hurry…they're coming!"

"The wood is going to take too long to start! " Don exclaimed desperately. "I need something that will burn faster!"

In a panic Charlie shrugged out of his blazer and gripped the torn sleeve tightly in his fist. The sound of tearing fabric ripped through the night air as Charlie yanked on the sleve; threads that had been cut by the sharp teeth of the coyote came apart quickly and he shoved the material into his brother's hands.

"Hurry…Don…hurry!" he shouted as he put his jacket back on to offset the sudden chill.

Don fumbled with the matches, his hands slippery from blood and sweat, but finally the flame flared up and caught the cloth. He quickly laid it on top of the wood and with bated breath watched as the coyotes slowed down in their approach. It was working, now if only the wood would catch fire quickly.

Charlie whirled around, calling for Samantha while scanning the dark cave for anything that he could burn. Even with the fire burning most of the cave was still hidden in darkness but he spied one of the bags and hurried over to it. Charlie upended the bag, dumping is contents unceremoniously on to the floor then sped back to the entrance and tossed it on top of the burning wood. Don added more wood to the flames and watched as the fire burned brighter, forcing the coyotes to back further away from the entrance. Relieved, Don scrubbed a shaky hand through his hair and was just turning around when Sammy flew out of the darkness.

Charlie was crouched down, gathering up more of the firewood and over-balancing himself on his good leg when Sammy jumped in his arms. The wood clattered to the ground and with a strangled "oomph" he spun around and his back hit the cave wall; with a groan he slid to the floor, landing with one leg folded beneath him and Samantha in his lap with her small arms curled tightly around his neck.

He ignored the pain as she hid her face in his chest and he held her close, resting his head against hers, whispering softly that everything was going to be all right. He winced, straightened his injured leg and shifted around to make himself a little more comfortable. The pain in his leg had become a dull throb but he tried to push it aside as he comforted the child.

Don gathered up the wood that his brother had dropped and piled it near the opening and then sat down next to Charlie; positioning himself within arms reach of the wood pile. Breathing heavily, they sat in silence for a while, shoulder to shoulder, watching the flames and keeping an eye on the entrance.

Finally, convinced that the coyotes wouldn't breach the fire Don turned slightly so that he could get a good look at the little girl cradled in his brother's arms and tried to push the hair out of Sammy's eyes. She returned his gaze somberly; her blue eyes wide open as she listened to the frenzied howls echoing around them.

"Its okay." he said gently. "We won't let them hurt you."

"Pwomise?" she asked softly, letting go of Charlie's neck and shifting around in his lap until she was sitting sideways and facing Don. Sammy leaned back, letting her head fall against Charlie's chest as she gazed intently at Don.

"I promise Sammy. " Don answered, swallowing hard at the fear reflected in her small blue eyes. He reached over again and tried to smooth the matted hair around her face and shook his head sadly. "Your Mommy is really going to have a problem brushing your hair sweetie."

She gazed at him for a moment and then stretched her hand up to grasp one of Charlie's curls. "Want cuwls" she said shyly.

Don's eyes drifted up to see Charlie's surprised expression and his face broke into a grin, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "That's something that you will have to discuss with your Mommy." he said, patting her softly on the knee.

Another round of howls erupted, drawing their attention back to the coyotes.

Charlie rubbed small circles on Sammy's back to comfort her and glanced at his brother. "What time do you think it is?" he asked in a strained voice and looked away when Don glanced around.

Don gazed at him a moment before checking his watch; his brothers pale face was from the attack, right? He shrugged and twisted around to check the time on his wrist watch but emitted a disgusted "eeew" when he pulled it from his wrist; it was coated with the coyotes slaver and some of it dripped from his fingers as he held it up.

"Oh, man." he said, staring dismally at the gooey mess coating the dial. "I think its four o'clock but it's a little hard to read. "

"Eeew." Sammy giggled, mimicking his expression. Her laughter had a soothing effect on the brothers and it washed over them, helping them tune out the sounds of the vicious growls and howls, if only for a few moments.

Don had such a woebegone expression on his face that Charlie couldn't resist teasing him. "It's just a watch Don. I'm sure you can take it to a watch repair service and get it cleaned up."

Don held it by his fingertips and gazed at Charlie like he had lost his mind. "Are you crazy?" he asked, tossing it on the ground. He winked at Sammy and added. "I'm not wearing that thing again."

Charlie and Sammy both laughed as Don settled back against the wall.

"What was that ploy you used to get rid of that coyote?" Charlie asked. "I could barely see you in the shadows but it looked to me like it had you pinned to the ground and then suddenly it was flying through the air."

Don snorted. "That was straight out of the FBI handbook. It's a self-defense maneuver that we're trained to use when an assailant has you pinned down. I didn't know if it was going to work against the animal but I ran out of options."

He shifted around and placed the splintered piece of the pole by his side and then relaxed against the wall, letting his left hand fall loosely at his side. It brushed against his brother's leg, coming in contact with his bloody jeans. He felt Charlie tense up beside him and move his leg but Don had already felt his wet pant leg and he rose up on his knees to get a closer look.

"Charlie did one of them bite you?" he asked, nervously shifting around so he could see better in the firelight. "Why didn't you say something?"

"It's just a scratch Don…nothing to worry about." his brother responded in a weak voice.

Don looked up worriedly at the sound of his voice; Charlie's face was pale and even in the firelight he could see the pain reflected in his eyes.

'Just a scratch huh?" He said as he pulled his pocket knife out and cut around the tear in the jeans, spreading the material far enough apart to expose the gash.

His brother let out a hiss and stiffened up at Don's exploration.

"Don't." Charlie begged, grabbing his forearm to stop him. "You're just making it worse."

"I've got to stop the bleeding Buddy." Don said worriedly, raising his head to meet his brother's eyes. He moved Charlie's hand and stood up to gather the blanket and the remaining bag that was lying near the rear of the cave.

Sammy sensed the change in them and shifted around so she could see Charlie's face and could tell that something was wrong. Not knowing what else to do, she stretched her hand up and patted his cheek gently while she laid her head against his chest; her Mommy always held her close when she wasn't feeling well.

Charlie had not spent much time around small children so he was surprised and touched by her act of tenderness; he took her small hand in his and kissed the top of her head whispering. "I'm okay Sammy."

Don returned and squatted down by his side. Dropping the blanket near Charlie's feet he sat back on his heels and rummaged around in the bag until he found a half empty bottle of water.

"You need to save that." Charlie reminded him unnecessarily. "There are only two more bottles left."

"I know that Charlie, but two will have to be enough because I've got to clean this out first. Besides." he added, trying to sound more confident. "This time tomorrow we'll be back in LA."

He shifted around so he had more light to work with and then ripped off the lower part of Charlie's pant leg, tossing the dirty and bloody fabric into the fire before pouring the water over the wound. The fire hissed as the wet material hit it but suddenly flared higher, giving Don brighter light to work by.

Charlie winced and tried not to move around but the water stung as it touched the open gash and with the little girl in his arms he didn't want to cry out so he gritted his teeth and forced himself to sit still but despite his best efforts an occasional muffled groan would escape his lips.

"Lucky for Dad that coyote didn't leap a little higher." Don said in an effort to get his brother's mind off of the pain; it worked.

Charlie raised his head and his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "Ah...lucky for Dad?"

"Yeah." Don answered, looking up with a slight smirk on his face. "He still has a chance at getting those grandchildren he wants so badly."

Charlie rolled his eyes and dropped his head back against the wall. "The last time …I checked ….he had two sons …for that task"

Don shrugged out of his jacket and ripped the cotton lining out of it, cutting it into strips while he talked. "True, but it takes the pressure off of me to know that you're still in the running."

"I have …to admit." he swallowed hard against the pain, trying to keep the banter going for Sammy's sake as well their own. "I'm….a…little…relieved about …that…myself."

"No kidding." Don said jokingly as he carefully wrapped the strips around his leg and tied them off. He leaned back and examined the bandage and with a sigh looked up to meet his brother's gaze.

"That's all I can do for now Charlie, at least the bleeding has stopped. I don't think it was very deep but you're probably going to need stitches." His eyes drifted over Charlie's body, noting in particular how much skin was showing. One pant leg had been shortened to an inch above his knee and the left arm to his jacket was missing. "You really are running out of clothes, aren't you?" Something tickled his memory and he remembered that parts of the cloth that Charlie had shoved into his hand were wet too. He scooted over to his brother's left side.

"Let me see your arm?" After a cursory check he decided they were just scratches so he poured a little water over them just to clean them out. "Anywhere else?"

Charlie tiredly shook his head but grabbed Don's arm as he turned way. "What about you…there's blood on of your face."

Don fingered the cut near his temple and flinched when he realized how close it was to his eye. "It's just a scratch." he answered. "But I'd better clean it so it doesn't get infected."

He tore a small strip of cloth from the remainder of the lining, dabbed it with water and washed the cut. Finally, he wiped the dried blood from his face and looked up.

"Better now?" he asked and smiled as Sammy also nodded her head in approval.

"Much better." Charlie said thickly.

Don pulled out one of the water bottles and twisted the lid. "I think that we could all use a drink." he said handing the bottle to Sammy. "Just a sip though, we have to climb the ridge tomorrow to get you back to your Mommy and Daddy, so we'll need the rest of it to help us get there. Okay?"

She nodded and gulped down a swallow before handing the bottle to Charlie who took a small sip before handing it back to his brother. Don drank his share then made sure the lid was tightly closed before putting the bottle back in the bag. He rose to his feet and shook out the blanket, draping it over Charlie and the little girl before placing a few more pieces of wood on the fire. Their stockpile of wood was dwindling but with only a few more hours until dawn, he fervently hoped that it would be enough.

He knelt down next to his brother. "Do you want me to take Sammy? It might be easier on your leg if I hold her."

"No. It's okay." Charlie answered softly. "She's not hurting me. Besides, you need your hands free in case they break through."

"Let me know if you change your mind. " Don said as he sat down and scooted backwards to sit side by side with his brother; their shoulders touching once again. He found comfort from the contact and reminded himself that as long as they were together they could get through this.

His mind raced as he reviewed their situation and possible outcomes; finally settling on two scenarios. Best case scenario: the coyotes would seek cover with the morning light and they could get out without any further contact. Worst case: they stayed and attacked again, although if that happened they would lose their advantage of hiding in the shadows, increasing the brother's odds of winning in another fight. Don was hoping for the first scenario because truth be told, he wasn't sure how either of them would fare in another encounter.

The three of them cuddled under the blanket while the coyotes prowled just beyond the fire. Shadows would sometimes cross behind the flames but none of them made any attempt to cross the fire.

Samantha sat up suddenly startling Charlie from his state of drowsiness.

"Doggie." she said.

Both brothers turned to peer at the shadows beyond the flames.

"They're not dog's sweetie." Don said quietly, without taking his eyes off of the entrance. "They're called coyotes and they're very dangerous."

"Doggie." she repeated again.

Charlie opened his mouth to explain, but his words caught in his throat as his gaze fell upon the little girl; she wasn't looking outside the cave, she was facing in the opposite direction. He shared a puzzled look with his brother and then their heads swiveled around and followed her gaze.

"Oh God!" Charlie whispered breathlessly.

"Shit!" Don muttered, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Most of the cave remained hidden in darkness but on the back wall the silhouette of a coyote danced eerily in the flickering firelight.

TBC


	19. Chapter 19

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Chapter 19:

Moonlight illuminated the back roads as the driver of the Nissan Titan expertly maneuvered around the quick curves and over unexpected cracks and potholes. He would have gotten to his destination faster if he had stayed on the main highway but they appeared unusually busy at this early morning hour; especially busy with the type of vehicles that he wanted to avoid. Fearing a road block, Juan had quickly veered off the main route and onto some little known back roads.

The Mexican glanced at the digital clock on the dashboard. Four a.m. was far too early in the morning to see so much activity on the highway. Lights suddenly flashed up ahead, prompting him to swerve and come to a stop behind a large advertising sign sitting in front of a corn field. He turned off the lights and climbed quietly out of the cab, motioning for Rico to follow.

The approaching car moved by slowly and as it passed by their hiding place the Mexicans could clearly hear chatter over a police band radio. The two men pressed themselves against the sign and remained silent long after the car had passed from their sight.

Scowling Juan straightened up and glared at his cousin. "This is your fault!" he hissed angrily shoving the older man aside as he strode to the truck.

"We don't know that….they could be looking for someone else." Rico protested; rushing to jump in the truck before Juan pulled out and left him behind.

Juan cursed under his breath and steered onto the road without another word. He drove slowly using only the moonlight to guide him until he came to a crossroads and paused, letting the truck idle while he checked for any other moving vehicles.

"It looks clear man." His cousin responded nervously, swiveling around in the seat to check all directions.

"Yeah…for now. "

Juan switched on the headlights and pulled ahead; flooring the gas pedal in his haste to get to the Jameson Farm.

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The coyotes continued to howl outside of the cave but inside there was an unnatural silence. The fear within the cavern was palpable; a living entity that surrounded the three people huddled against the cold wall, infecting them like some poisonous contagion running through their veins.

No one moved, not even the little girl. It was as if an icy wind had blown over them and left them frozen; barely breathing, eyes locked on the shadowy apparition.

Don broke the spell and leaned forward, eyes gazing intently into the darkness.

"Why do you think its just sitting there?" Charlie asked in a hushed tone.

"Haven't a clue." Don uttered under his breath; his fingers tightening around the broken staff. "I put him near the rear of the cave…where do you think it is?"

Charlie gazed at the animal's shadow and spoke in a low voice. "Well, since a shadow gets bigger when the object is closer to the source of light and his shadow isn't that large, my guess would be that he's probably about forty feet back and against the opposite wall."

"Sounds about right." Don agreed.

Suddenly the shadow moved, morphing with the darker shadows around it and disappeared from view.

Simultaneous gasps echoed from the brothers and Charlie's arms tightened protectively around the child.

"Where did it go?" Don asked anxiously. He started to rise to his feet but Charlie grabbed his forearm.

"Wait…he's still there." Charlie said, speaking softly. "Look…you can just barely see the shadow of his ear….he just laid his head down."

"Now why would he do a thing like that?" Don asked suspiciously, settling back into place. "Why isn't he carrying on like the others or trying to attack us?"

"Maybe he's hurt?" Charlie posed the question; keeping his eyes glued to the partial shadow.

"I think we only hurt two of them, the big one that attacked me and another one." Don shook his head, "I don't know Charlie, wouldn't he be more aggressive if he was hurt…you know, and lash out because he was in pain."

Charlie shrugged his shoulders, relaxing a little as he pondered over his brother's words.

"Hey Don." He said suddenly turning to face him. "Remember a couple of months ago when a coyote wandered into the Hillcrest Mall. If I remember correctly, it was reported that the animal wasn't aggressive at all; it didn't growl or make any attempt to attack anyone." He turned and faced the shadow again. "All it did was look for a quiet, warm spot so it could lie down. "

Don nodded his head thoughtfully. "Yeah, now that you mention it, I do remember that. When animal control got there it didn't even go after them. They sedated it and took it to a veterinarian… right?"

"Right." Charlie agreed. "It turned out that the animal had been hit by a car and had severe internal injuries. They had to euthanize it but my point is this. Our coyote is behaving exactly the same way, he knows we're here but he isn't making any move to attack us or escape from the cave. It must have slipped in here just before we came in."

"Our coyote?" Don asked in a bemused tone

Charlie shrugged. "Well, as long as he doesn't become aggressive."

"Uh, huh." The agent responded absently, peering at the shadow. "I sure hope that it isn't that big one…I'm not sure that I could go another round with him."

What are you going to do?"

Don settled back down and leaned against the wall. "Well, this is the way that I see it Charlie. I'm not in any condition to take him on right now and neither are you. If we're right about him then he isn't going to try anything either." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I'm thinking that if he leaves us alone then we can return the favor. What do you think?"

"I 'm with …ow!" he hissed suddenly, quickly shifting Samantha legs from his injured leg. "Stay on this side, okay Sammy?"

"kay." she mumbled sleepily and curled up on his lap; her own fears disappearing as the brothers began to relax.

"Charlie why don't you let me hold her for a while?" Don asked with concern.

Charlie shook his head. "I'm okay Don, and besides, like I said before you need your hands free, especially now."

"Okay. Look, we have a couple of more hours until daylight, why don't you try and get a little shut eye." He tossed a couple of more pieces of wood on the fire and glanced at the shadow; making sure that it was still visible. "I'll wake you up if I need any help."

Charlie opened his mouth to protest but a yawn overtook him instead. Sammy had already fallen asleep in his arms and he realized that he had been just about to wake Don up for his time at watch when the attack had begun.

"Are you sure?" he asked tiredly, leaning his head back against the wall; his eyes already closing.

"I'm sure. Now get some sleep." Don replied, tossing another stick onto the fire. "I'll wake you up as soon as it gets daylight."

Don glanced at his brother in the flickering light; pain etched into his features. This was his fault; Charlie didn't belong here. He should be safe in front of a chalkboard somewhere, making discoveries that no one else was capable of making and yet, here he was, fighting for his life with a small chance of survival.

From out of nowhere his father's words echoed through his mind.

"_Don, this is a life you've chosen for yourself. I'd rather you didn't choose it for Charlie."_

His rubbed his hand thoughtfully over his mouth and remembered the time Alan had said that to him. It was during another case that Charlie had helped him with. Guiltily he looked away; he hadn't understood his father's fears at the time but he got it now.

He tossed some more pieces of wood onto the fire and checked the shadow on the wall. It was still there; apparently the animal had fallen asleep. At least that was what Don wanted to think but just in case he laid the broken shaft across his lap and kept a firm grip on it.

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David leaned over the sink and cupped his hands under the running water and splashed his face several times. He turned off the water and grabbed a couple of paper towels; drying his face and hands without even realizing what he was doing. Fatigue was interfering with his thought processes and he was hoping the water would be enough to wake him up; that and another trip to the break room for coffee.

He pushed through the glass door and picked up a blueberry muffin on his way to the coffee machine. Alan, Amita and Larry had arrived back at the office at four thirty, bringing with them several large trays filled with muffins and doughnuts. It was almost daylight now and this was his second trip to the break room since their arrival. David removed the plastic wrap from the muffin and took a bite while the coffee finished brewing. He was hungrier than he thought and quickly took another bite as he filled his mug. The door opened and he turned as Liz wearily walked over to join him.

He smiled slightly and motioned toward the table. "The blueberry muffins are really good." he said, pausing to take a sip of his coffee.

Liz set the folder that she was carrying on the table and perused the pastries. "Hmm, the blueberry looks good but I think I'll take this one instead." She pulled the wrap away and took a bite; running her tongue around the corner of her lips to collect the crumbs.

David grinned. "You enjoyed that way too much. What kind of muffin is that?"

"My friend." she replied with a grin. "This is a chocolate chip muffin."

"Ah." he smirked. "I should have known." He glanced at the folder and pointed at it with his cup. "You find out anything new?"

Liz answered as she filled up her coffee mug. "Nothing that is going to help us find them." She set her cup next to the folder and flipped it open. "Chavez is here legally and he works for a masonry factory in Victorville but if he has a driver's license it's a forgery. However, I did find out the name of the owner of the truck." She thumbed through a few pages before finding the one that she was looking for. "Ted Martin, the factory's owner has several of the vehicles on site for company use. He's currently out of town but state troopers spoke with his wife and she said that she loaned one of the trucks to Chavez. Mrs. Martin said he told her that he was helping a friend move this weekend and asked if he could borrow it."

"They have a habit of loaning vehicles to their employees?" David asked incredulously.

Liz shrugged. "Apparently."

"I don't suppose he told her where this move was going to take place."

"No such luck." she said somberly, finishing off the muffin before gathering up the folder and following David to the door.

Morning light began to filter in through the windows and David sighed as he glanced through the glass; it was taking Amita and Larry longer to get through Charlie's data than they had anticipated. He held the door open for Liz and together they headed back to the war room.

Robin stepped from the elevator and joined them along the way, anxiously seeking any new information that they might have uncovered.

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_Charlie could feel the hot, fetid breath on the back of his head. Its drool was dripping on his neck, slipping beneath the collar of his tee shirt and sliding down his back. He swallowed hard and tried to find his voice._

"_Don." he rasped, trying to control his panic and get his brother's attention. Don's eyes were closed and his head was listing sideways against the wall of the cave. _

"_Don." he tried again, almost sobbing." Don….wake up!"_

_His brother rolled his head and opened his eyes; one blink and Don was on his knees in front of him_

"_Charlie, don't move!" His brother warned urgently._

_Charlie tried to swallow and slow his breathing enough to speak. "Hurry...you've got to take Sammy!" he whispered desperately._

_Don's fingers curled around the stake; his eyes glued to the coyote hovering over his brother's exposed neck. _

"_Charlie when I say move, duck down! " _

_Don stared into the cold eyes of the coyote and with a chill realized that he was only going to get one chance to stop him from killing his brother. His white-knuckled grip on the stake tightened even further. "Get ready." _

"_No….please….take…Sammy." _

_Without taking his eyes off of the beast, Don slowly took the child and laid her carefully on the ground beside him._

_Suddenly Charlie screamed a blood-curdling yell that shook him to the core. Don watched as his brothers hands flew up to each side of his neck, struggling to keep the animals mouth from closing tightly around his throat but it was no use, despite his efforts its teeth were sinking into his flesh. Desperately Don jabbed the stake into one of the coyotes eyes and watched in horror as it frantically pulled away, ripping his brothers throat apart as it went. _

_Distantly Charlie could hear Don screaming his name but as his life's blood gushed from his neck, his hearing and sight began to dim and suddenly everything faded to black as his lifeless body slumped into his brother's arms._

Charlie's eyes jerked open; chest heaving and heart pounding loudly in his ears and jumped when Don's face suddenly loomed over him.

"Bad dream?"

"Dream?" Charlie huffed; his hands flying to his throat to check for holes. "More like a nightmare." he added, releasing a shaky breath as he gazed around the cave.

"I can't imagine why?" his brother replied sarcastically.

Gray light was beginning to filter in through the opening; dawn was approaching and soon the long night would be over.

Charlie squinted, focusing his eyes on the interior of the cave and in the early morning light he could see the outline of the coyote; it was sitting up and watching them.

Don followed his gaze. "We've been keeping an eye on each other and as it turns out, he is the big one that I fought with last night."

"What about his friends?" Charlie asked without taking his eyes off of the animal; the dream still vivid in his mind.

"I haven't heard a sound out of them for the last fifteen minutes so I'm thinking that they left but we'll wait a few more minutes to be sure." He stretched his hand down to him. "Here let me give you a hand up."

Charlie took it and Don pulled him to his feet, holding onto him while he balanced his weight on his injured leg.

"Think you'll be able to climb?" his brother asked worriedly.

"Try and stop me." Charlie retorted, walking around in a circle and stretching his muscles.

Sammy sat up, yawning and rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Good morning sweetie." Don said, bending down to pick her up. "What do you say we go outside and stretch our legs before we start our climb." he turned to his brother. "I've already put our things together, figured we could eat somewhere on the mountain."

Charlie took the bag from him and together they stepped across the charred remains of their fire and out into the morning air. They started across the clearing but at the edge Don glanced back at the cave.

The coyote was standing in the opening, dark eyes watching them closely. Their eyes met and it was as if a silent understanding passed between them; one that said they were alike, that they both had been protecting their own. It turned suddenly and loped away, its gait marred only by a slight limp.

Don smiled as he turned around and headed up the mountain. He was glad that the animal hadn't been too seriously injured. After all, he thought, he was only trying to protect his family, just like Don would have done had their roles been reversed. He felt sorry for the coyote; man was continually destroying their habitats and even he and Charlie, albeit completely unintentionally, had encroached on their space.

"You okay Don?"

He turned around and smiled at Charlie's worried expression. "I'm fine Charlie." he said squeezing his shoulder lightly. "Come on, we have to get Princess Samantha back to her parents today. Isn't that right Sammy?"

"Wight." Sammy giggled and tightened her arms around his neck. "Uncle Donnie can you tell me anothew stowy about Siw Donald and Siw Chawles?"

"Maybe later." Don said carefully picking his way along the trail. "Hold on tight now, we're going to start climbing pretty soon."

"I weally like that stowe." she said

"Better start thinking up some stories Chuck." he called over his shoulder.

Charlie looked up in surprise. "Me? Why me? It was your idea, remember?" he retorted following in his brothers footsteps.

"Was not."

"Was too."

Sammy giggled again and more lighthearted than they had been in days, the brothers slowly made their way along the trail.

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Juan leaned against his truck and watched in anticipation as the sky began to grow brighter. A smile spread across his face as the gray clouds turned to bright pinks and yellows but the smile never touched his eyes. His smile was not in appreciation of nature's beautiful show but out of necessity for its revealing light. He saw it only as a means to an end; the morning light would give him a chance to finish a job that should have ended two days ago.

He flicked his cigarette to the ground as he opened the door and climbed into the cab. A quick glance to the bed of the truck revealed a still sleeping Rico, oblivious to the beautiful sunrise.

Juan didn't bother to wake him; he just started the engine, put the truck into gear and popped in a CD. The Mexican hummed along with the tune as he pulled onto the access road.

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"Amita take a look at this!" Larry exclaimed, hovering over Charlie's laptop.

"What did you find?" She asked breathlessly as she hurried over with Alan right behind her.

"This crime scene." he said pointing at the computer screen. "It doesn't fit in with the rest of the locations. It looks like Charlie eliminated specific points of the case so that he could broaden his search allowing the program to explore more probabilities. "

He looked up as David, Liz and Robin entered the conference room and immediately waved them over.

"Does this location have any major significance to the case?" he asked anxiously.

David frowned and studied the address. "Larry, I'm not familiar with that location at all." Puzzled he glanced at the report the professor was reading from. "This isn't even an FBI case report. Where did you find this? "

"This…this report is what Charlie found." The older professor said excitedly. "This is our missing piece to the puzzle."

Amita cut in. "All of the other victims were found in LA and none of them were anywhere near a farm." She said, motioning to the pictures of the victims. "David don't you see what this means? This crime scene is an anomaly; it doesn't follow the same pattern as the other murders."

Alan stepped forward, hope filling his eyes for the first time in two days. "Charlie would have known this?"

Amita expression softened as she turned to the older man. "Yes Alan. Charlie discovered this anomaly and Charlie being Charlie, he would have wanted to see the farm for himself." She turned back to face the agents.

Liz leaned forward breathlessly. "You believe that Don and Charlie went to this farm, don't you?"

"Yes, we do!" Both professors answered simultaneously.

"But Don would never take Charlie to a dangerous place." Alan interrupted with a shake of his head. "And besides, wouldn't he have to report where he was going?"

"Not necessarily Alan." David responded. "Don was officially off duty and the farm was wasn't part of our investigation. According to this report the case was sent to the cold case files and the site was released back to the owner." He shook his head. "At the time, Don didn't have any evidence suggesting that this murder was linked to our current case or that any danger still existed at that location."

Liz's eyes widened as she met David's. "Only it turns out that the farm is a part of our case and that our suspect takes the children back there and when he's finished he wraps them in plastic and returns them to LA."

David rubbed his chin thoughtfully. 'Right…to avoid any connection with the murder at the farm."

"Only this time Don and Charlie interrupted them and somehow they got the upper hand." Liz added as she paced nervously around the room.

Robin stepped forward, tossing a theory of her own into the mix. "What if the first attack occurred because the killer couldn't control himself and the little girl was just a victim of opportunity. Then after that he got smart and made sure that the rest of his victims were found far away from the farm."

Amita stepped forward. "Because he lives or works on that farm and he didn't want you to check out that neighborhood. "

"Larry, pull up a map of that region." David stood in front of the plasma screen and traced a highway with his finger.

"Check this out." he said. "Here is Barstow, where the cell tower is located that Don's last call went through. " His finger followed the highway and stopped at the farm. "This is the Jameson Farm where this murder victim was found and this farm is also one of three onion farms in San Bernardino County." He turned around suddenly as a thought came to mind. "Our forensic department reported that the SUV was covered with sand and that there was more sand than there should have been in the wheel wells of Don's car." David's eyes drifted across the faces of the others, finally settling on those of his partner. "Sand that isn't found in the San Gabriel Mountains."

"That highway runs over the Mojave Desert so that could account for the sand." Larry mused out loud.

David shook his head. "No. There was too much sand for just the highway." He strode back to the table where Charlie's laptop still displayed the San Bernardino case file and scrolled through the report reading it more thoroughly.

"The Jameson Farm borders on the Mojave Desert and there is a ten mile dirt road that leads to the farm house after you leave the highway. That dirt road is the desert. "

He spoke those last words with conviction;David couldn't explain how he knew for sure that Don and Charlie had gone out to that farm but he had an undeniable feeling in his gut that he was right.

David's course of action was suddenly clear. "Liz, get on the phone and get us a SWAT team. We're flying up to that farm."

She hurried out of the room while he pulled out his cell phone.

"Colby…listen…..we know where Don and Charlie went." He strode purposely from the room to gather his forces.

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It was almost seven a.m. and daylight filtered through the windows of the house on Henderson Street making it easier for the forensic team to lift prints and look for additional evidence.

Colby stuck his hands in his pockets as he wandered through the house hoping to find something that would tell them where to find the Eppes and the little girl. He was so focused that he was startled when his phone began to ring.

"Granger." Colby answered. "Really? Yeah, we'll meet you there."

A quick glance around the room failed to turn up Nikki so he wove his way between the forensic team to locate his partner. He found her outside talking to the sheriff and his deputy and hurried over to her side.

"David just called. Larry and Amita found something on Charlie's laptop. They think they've discovered where Don and Charlie might have gone. " He turned excitedly to Anderson. "Sheriff how far is it to the Jameson farm?"

Anderson pushed the rim of his hat up before answering Colby's question. "The Jameson farm is located on the outskirts of Hesperia. It will take us about forty minutes to get there. "

The deputy glanced from the sheriff to the agent. "Do you really believe that's where they've gone? "

"We won't know until we get there. Sheriff you lead, we'll follow, just give me a minute to get the SWAT team together."

Nikki ran alongside of him. "What else did David say?"

"He and Liz are coming up by chopper. They're going to meet us at the farm."

_TBC_


	20. Chapter 20

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I truly appreciate your reviews.

Chapter 20:

The wind dipped and swirled around the four figures standing on the elevated crosswalk; gently caressing each of them before soaring to lofty heights and giving chase to the FBI helicopter as it took flight.

Alan slumped forward, leaning his elbows on the rails above the stairs; his eyes following the helicopter as it disappeared from view. An eagle distracted him and as it caught the wind he tracked its path across the sky. Alan envied that raptor and desperately wished that he had wings of his own to spread and fly; to catch the air current and trail that steel bird to its destination.

His eyes lingered on the horizon and he didn't break away until Larry broke the silence. Alan gazed at him in surprise; it was as if his friend had read his mind and then he realized that all four of them had been following the eagle's flight.

"If only we were birds and could catch that zephyr." the professor sighed, staring up at the sky as if he could see the invisible stream of air. "Then we could soar through the heavens with David and Liz to find our dear lost ones. "

"Yeah." Alan murmured, his voice catching in his throat. "But our wishes aren't going to change anything…. are they?"

On leaden legs Alan shuffled over to a bench and slowly sat down. He felt old today, older than he had ever felt in his life and his panic from the night before was threatening to engulf him. He stuck his hand in his jacket pocket and let his fingers curl around the small photograph; his lifeline. Absently he pulled it out, letting his eyes drift over the picture and was surprised to see a drop of moisture fall on the glass. In a daze he watched the small frame shake in his trembling hand as another drop found its way to the glass. Worry, fatigue and lack of food had left him weak but he had no desire to seek either nourishment or rest. No…there was only one thing that could help him now and that was out of his hands.

Alan had forgotten about the others until gentle hands covered his and he looked up to meet Amita's red-rimmed and swollen eyes. Tears ran down her cheeks as well and he swallowed hard as he wrapped an arm around her, unable to speak. She leaned in and rested her head on his shoulder as Robin sat down on his other side. He met her eyes and extended his other arm to pull her close; her tears staining the other side of his jacket. Larry stepped behind them and placed his hands on Alan's shoulders to let him know that he was there as well.

No words were spoken, none were necessary; they would stay together, each one holding on to the other while they waited to hear from David.

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In daylight and at close range their beacon, the foothills, turned against them. At first there had been a gentle slope dotted with patches of cactus, yucca plants and an occasional Joshua tree. The trail had been fairly easy to follow and Charlie had been able to use the pole that he had carried from the farmhouse like a cane to help relieve some of the pressure on his injured leg. Still, it was slow going so they had even allowed Sammy to walk for a while but that had all ended when the trail suddenly made a sharp incline and became rockier.

The trio stopped at the base of the incline and ate their breakfast while trying to figure out their best course of action. Only two slices of bread were left and just enough peanut butter to cover them. Charlie folded Samantha's bread over the way she liked it and handed it to her then split the remaining one with his brother.

"I thought I was getting tired of these." Don confessed as his stomach rumbled. "But right now I think I could eat a whole loaf."

Charlie shook his head ruefully. "I never thought I would say it but I have to agree with you.

The agent wiped the sweat from his brow and frowned at the bright ball of light in the sky. "The sun hasn't even been up that long and I'll bet the temperature is already eighty degrees."

As a proud member of the North American Sun Dial Society, Charlie had no problem in determining the time but the temperature was a different story. "Can't disagree or confirm it bro, but it certainly feels that way and it's only seven fifteen." He pulled up the end of his tee shirt and wiped the sweat from his neck.

Don's eyebrows rose slightly. "Seven fifteen huh? You can determine that just from looking at the sun?"

Charlie shrugged. "Sure, you just have to measure the movement of the shadows and…"

Don raised his hand. "Whoa, stop. I'll take you word for it."

Charlie laughed out loud. "It also helps to have this." he said pulling his watch from his jeans pocket.

"Funny Charlie, funny. " Don said dryly as he rummaged through the bag until he found the bottle of water that he had opened the previous night. "Who needs a drink?"

Sammy raised her hand right away and Don handed her the bottle. "You can't drink a lot sweetie; we only have one bottle left when this one is gone."

She took two swallows and passed it to Charlie. The professor savored his swallow before handing the bottle back to his brother. Don gulped his down and tightened the lid back on the bottle; only a fourth left in this one and they weren't even sure how long it was going to take them to get over the ridge. He closed the bag and stood up, arching his back and stretching his muscles as he stared at the ridge line. Don wandered closer as he tried to pinpoint the best way for them to climb to the peak. He scratched at the three day old stubble on his cheek and frowned when he discovered that there was only one clear path to the top of the ridge. He walked back and squatted down next to his brother.

"The way I see it we have two problems."

"One…how to secure Sammy in a way that will leave your hands free and two...you're worried about how I'm going to make the climb. " His brother finished for him.

"Right." Don agreed, leaning over to check the bandage on Charlie's leg. "It looks like its holding up pretty good; at least I don't see any fresh signs of bleeding." His brow furrowed with concern and he looked up. "Look buddy, I know that's got to hurt a lot…..how are you holding up? "

"I'm not going to deny that I could use some med's right now but I can make the climb Don, maybe not as fast as I would like too, but I will make it." Charlie said determinedly. "We need to concentrate on how you can make it up that ridge with Sammy on your back since you won't be able to hold her legs around you."

Don knew his brother well and could see the pain in his dark eyes but he was also aware that Charlie was a fighter and would not give up easily so he just nodded his head and agreed with him. "I've been thinking about that. We need to create some kind of stirrups for her to stick her feet in."

"Let's review our resources." Charlie said upending the bag and dumping the contents on the ground. "We have one full bottle of water left, five cookies, eight empty bottles, your belt and jacket, the blanket, our hats and my blazer." He held it up and grimaced at the condition of the garment and added. "Well…what's left of it anyway."

"Can I have a cookie?" Samantha asked as she finished her sandwich.

"We now have four cookies left." Charlie amended handing one to the little girl with a grin.

Don studied the contents thoughtfully. "If I wore my jacket she could put her feet in my pockets…..they might work as stirrups."

"That's a great idea Don." His brother agreed, lifting up the FBI windbreaker. He held it up and examined the pockets; it was a well made jacket and it looked like the pockets would be strong enough to withstand any pressure that the little girl could exert. His hands fell on the sleeves and a thought occurred to him.

"I think I've found a flaw in your idea. " Charlie said, glancing sideways at his brother.

Don's forehead wrinkled in puzzlement. "Flaw. What kind of flaw?"

The young professor nodded toward the sun. "You've already pointed out how hot it is and if you add the jacket, Sammy's weight and the strain of the climb you'll probably be adding another twenty degrees too your body heat. You'll end up with heatstroke."

Don scrubbed a hand through his hair "I don't think we have a choice Charlie." he sorted through their remaining items and met his brother's gaze. "There isn't anything else here that we can use for Sammy to tuck her feet in."

Suddenly Charlie's eyes lit up. "Wait. If we cut off the sleeves and rip out the rest of the lining then the jacket would be a lot lighter and if you only zip it up far enough to hold the bottom of the jacket together then the heat wouldn't be as overwhelming."

"I like it." Don said, pulling out his pocket knife. While Charlie held the sleeves out, Don cut them off, and then he ripped out the rest of the cotton lining. He stuffed the remaining material in the bag and then held up his new vest.

"I'm not sure the bureau would see it as a fashion statement but it works for me." He said with a grin and slipped it on, zipping it up just enough to hold it together.

"Sammy hop on my back, we want to try something." Don said motioning the little girl over as he knelt down.

She climbed on his back and at Charlie's direction, tucked her feet into the pockets of the jacket. Her small legs were just the right length to reach the pockets and she wrapped her arms around Don's neck as he stood up. Charlie stretched Don's belt around her back and under his brother's arms to buckle it across his chest.

The young professor walked around them, checking for stress signs on the belt and material of the jacket. "It feels secure Don. I think it will work and I'll stay close enough so that I can keep an eye on Sammy. "

"We might as well get started then." Don said as he adjusted the belt to a more comfortable position.

"Give me a minute to put everything back in the bag."

While Charlie gathered their things, Don took the opportunity to check the trail behind them. Far in the distance, he could see a hawk flying high in the sky and wondered if it was the red-tail that had saved them from the rattler. Other than the hawk, the bright blue sky remained empty except for the blazing sun that somehow managed to stay directly over them. _"Not even a cloud to offer up a shade_." he thought bitterly, letting his eyes drift slowly downward to the desert floor. The seemingly lifeless and desolate expanse mocked him for he had seen its hidden truth and he knew it was anything but barren.

"_Empty my ass." _he thought darkly. The past few days had taught him how abundant life was in the Mojave and more importantly, to tread carefully. A sense of relief flooded him then; thankful that they hadn't discovered any more of its deadly inhabitants. But then, he reminded himself, they weren't out of it yet.

"All set."

He turned back around as Charlie draped the bag across his chest and gripped the broken hoe handle.

Without another word they walked to the mountainside and Don pointed out the path that he thought they should take to the crest.

"I make it around two hundred and fifty yards. " Don said. "And there is a small trail that snakes along the ridge that we can follow. " He pointed to a cluster of boulders about

twenty feet from the crest. "I think there might be a small ledge up there too."

Charlie squinted and cupped a hand over his eyes as he scanned the rugged terrain. An avid hiker himself, it didn't take him long to find a few trouble spots. "There are a couple of areas that might cause us a few problems. Over there by that cactus." he said pointing at the location. "The sand isn't packed down like the rest of the soil and right before the ledge is a cluster of small, loose stones."

"Right." Don agreed rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "We'll just have to take it slow."

"Wait a minute." Charlie said as he made sure that Sammy's hat was tightly in place. "Rest your head on Uncle Donnie's shoulder and hold on real tight. Okay?"

She looked up at him with complete trust in her bright blue eyes and asked excitedly. "Gonna see Mommy and Daddy today, wight?"

"Right." Charlie agreed swallowing thickly. They couldn't let her down; somehow they were going to get across the mountain this morning and make it to Hesperia.

"Hold tight Sammy." Don ordered and started up the ridge with Charlie following close behind him.

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The helicopter set down in the middle of the dirt road about a hundred yards from the farmhouse. The small clearing was full of vehicles, leaving very little room for the pilot to land the chopper and the road had been his only choice.; this was fortunate for the farmer since only the low onion plants were within range of the mighty blades.

David and Liz jumped out of the helicopter as soon as it touched the ground,ducking under the rotar blades until they were clear of them before making a beeline for the old house. Two Hesperia police cars and two FBI vehicles filled up the small area around the general store.

Colby had been watching for them and met them on the front porch.

"Are they here?" Liz asked breathlessly.

With a shake of his head Colby motioned for them to follow him into the house. He stepped cautiously through the clutter scattered about the room and led them over to the counter where he pointed to a clipboard that was lying on the floor amid a pile of garbage. "They were here." he said grimly.

David slipped on a plastic glove and knelt down to trace a few of the numbers with his finger. "Charlie's clipboard. I'd recognize his writing anywhere." He sighed heavily as he stood up.

Liz wrinkled her nose. "This place stinks."

"Its even worse in the back room." Nikki said as she walked behind the counter and pointed to the open door leading downstairs. "We found spots of dried blood down in the basement along with strips of cloth."

Colby picked up the conversation. "David, we think that Don and Charlie were tied up downstairs before they were moved."

"Yeah, but where are they now and how do we find them?" Liz asked anxiously, glancing around the room; the place was a shambles and the acrid smell was beginning to upset her stomach.

The screen door slammed shut as a man walked into the house and the agents turned to face him.

"We found some tire tracks out back on the access road. It looks like our guys might have left that way. "

Colby stepped forward. "David, this is Sheriff Anderson. Sheriff, this is Agent Sinclair and Agent Warner.

Anderson stretched out his hand. "Nice to meet you. Are you the boss?"

"Until we find him." David responded somberly as he took his hand.

"Well, I hope we do find him son." The sheriff returned sympathetically although his voice didn't hold much confidence that they would find them alive.

David swallowed hard and looked away, not willing to accept the fact that they might be too late so he decided to change the topic back to the investigation. "Where does that access road lead to?"

"It skirts the onion fields and then heads out toward the Mojave."

David tilted his head. "Mojave? You think they took them out to the desert?"

"No offense son, but that's the perfect place to hide a few bodies. Not much chance of someone stumbling over them, if you get my drift?"

David tightened his jaw. "Loud and clear Sheriff. Let's go take a look at this road."

They followed the sheriff out the door just as the forensic team arrived and Colby hung back to hold the door open for them while they carried in their equipment. He caught up to the team a few minutes later and bent over to look at a set of tire tracks that the agents were studying.

"They look like the same tracks we found in the San Gabriel's."

David nodded in agreement and wiped the sweat from his brow as he straightened up and perused the area. The sun had only been up for an hour but the cool morning air had already started to warm up. The sweat wasn't from the heat though; it was from the implication that they might be too late to save Don, Charlie and the little girl.

"_Why else would Martinez and Chavez be heading out to the desert except to dispose of their bodies?" _he thought dispiritedly. His eyes drifted back to the tracks and he turned to the sheriff.

"How old do you think those tracks are?"

Anderson shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe an hour, more or less. The wind hasn't had a chance to blow them away yet. "

"There are only one set of tracks." Liz pointed out. "Would they have to return the same way?"

"Not necessarily but if they were coming back here, they would probably use this road." He gaze drifted out toward the foothills. "Less chance of being seen by anyone. " He added as an afterthought.

"All right. This is what we'll do." David said decisively. "Sheriff you can lead the search on the ground and I'll have a few members of our SWAT team tag along." He met the man's eye. "How soon can you get started?"

Anderson glanced at his deputy and shrugged. "We'll need about a half an hour to get our gear together."

"Good." David started walking back toward the front of the house with the others following close behind him. "We're going up in the chopper and follow the access road out, see if we can spot the truck."

"That's a good plan Agent Sinclair." The sheriff said as they strode around the house. "There's only one thing wrong with it, when you reach the desert you'll have no way of knowing what direction they took."

"I know that sheriff. That's why I'm counting on you to get out there as soon as possible, but in the meantime, there's still a chance that we might spot the truck from the air."

"We're on our way." The sheriff said as he and the deputy hurried over to their patrol car.

David turned to Colby and nodded toward the SWAT team standing near the porch.

"Tell Kinsey to split up his men, half with the sheriff and half here, just in case they return to the farm. Find out if he needs anyone from the team that we brought with us."

Colby hurried away to relay the message while David, Liz and Nikki made their way over to the helicopter. Nikki was putting on her tactical gear by the time Colby had jumped in and closed the door. He grabbed his vest and put his gear on as the chopper began to rise from the ground.

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Put your back into it Rico!" Juan shouted over the noise of the engine. The pair had been making good time until the rear right wheel had slipped into an animal's hidden burrow. As the tire slipped back again the Mexican angrily shut the engine off and jumped out of the truck.

Rico leaned heavily against the vehicle, panting and wiping the sweat from his brow as his cousin squatted down next to him and studied the hole.

"I told you we should have waited on the Hesperia side." Rico whined. "We could have picked them off as they came over the mountain."

"Don't push me Rico!" Juan shouted angrily jumping to his feet. "We have to catch them on this side. It's too risky on the other side, someone might see us!" He grabbed a fist full of Rico's shirt and shook him. "Asi es asi sera!"

He shoved his cousin away as an idea came to mind and grabbing one of the shovels Juan began to dig around the trapped tire, trying to free enough open space to slide the shovel beneath it. Finally, on his hands and knees he shoved enough sand out of the way and turned the shovel over before wedging it across the hole and underneath the tire.

"Hand me the other shovel." he ordered gruffly.

Rico quickly reached over the side of truck bed and grabbed the spade. "Do you think that will work?" he asked handing the tool to Juan.

The younger man didn't answer as he knelt down and wedged the second shovel alongside of the first one. He stood up and dusted the sand from his hands before turning and heading for the cab.

"Put your back into this time Rico or we'll be here all day." he muttered crossly as he closed the door and started the engine.

Martinez glared at the back of his head with hate filled eyes; one of these days his cousin was going to go too far. Gritting his teeth he put his shoulder against the vehicle and pushed as Juan stepped on the gas pedal. The truck lurched forward and the tire moved ahead before slipping back again.

He heard Juan curse and looked up quickly. "Do it again." he called out. "It almost made it."

Once again Juan floored the accelerator and after a moment's hesitation, the truck jumped forward. The tire rolled over the shovels and was immediately followed by the sound of loud snaps as the handles broke in half under the full weight of the truck. Juan pulled ahead and waited for Rico to grab the pieces of the tools, toss them in the back and jump in beside of him.

"Finally!" the younger man hissed and switched the air conditioner fan on full force. "Damn sun, a man could bake out there in a couple of hours."

Juan drove slower now trying to avoid any hidden obstacles and prevent any further delays. A line of sand dunes came into view and he let out a string of curses as he turned to drive parallel with them. He couldn't risk driving over them and getting stuck; he would have to go around them until they were small enough to drive over. After forty-five minutes he edged around them and angled back toward the foothills.

"How long will it take us?" Rico asked, glancing sideways at his cousin.

Juan scowled but kept his eyes pealed to the ground. "Maybe an hour, more or less. But it doesn't matter." he added grimly. "If they're still alive, we'll find them."

Rico's eyes lit up for the first time in two days. "The little one belongs to me… but I want to kill one of the cabrones."

"Sure Rico, we'll each take one." Juan tossed the binoculars to the older man. "Keep an eye on the ground ahead, let me know if you see any holes in the sand….or any bodies." he chuckled dryly.

Rico laughed with him and put his eyes against the rims of the glass. His smile brightened even further when he lifted the binoculars a little higher and realized that they were finally closing in on the foothills.

TBC

Translations: Asi es asi sera = this is how it is; this is how it is going to be.

Cabrones = bastards

_A/N: I'd like to extend my apologies to the people who read Chapter 19 in the first two hours after I posted it. In the part where Larry and Amita are explaining their discovery to David , I used the word "excitedly" multiple times. Although I edited and reviewed the chapter many times, I still managed to miss this glaring detail until after I posted it. Needless to say, I freaked out as soon as I discovered my mistake and by 12:00 midnight I had rewritten the section. If you read the segment again, I think that you will agree that the revision flows much better with the storyline._


	21. Chapter 21

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Thank you for your reviews and for all of your alerts.

Chapter 21:

The pilot circled the house and followed the access road around the fields until he came to the desert's edge. The helicopter hovered just above the fields, its mighty rotor blades fanning the fava bean plants and whipping them wildly to and fro.

The vast expanse of the Mojave Desert unfolded before the team's eyes, spreading out in all directions and with it came a sobering realization; the sheriff had been right, without a trail they didn't stand a chance in hell of locating their friends.

The silence in the chopper was palpable; with sinking hearts the agents could only gape at the visage before them, momentarily overwhelmed by the sheer enormity of their task. They had flown over the desert to get there of course, but then it had been to get to the farmhouse, the idea of having to search the desert had been a distant probability at best, but now it had become a reality and with it an overwhelming feeling of futility.

It was the pilot that finally broke the spell.

"Agent Sinclair?"

David coughed and found his voice. "Ah…yes?"

"Sir?" the pilot tried again. "What direction do you want me to take?"

The agent took a deep breath. "Direction…right?" Does anybody see anything…tracks or the truck?'

He received only negative responses from the agents and the three-man SWAT team seated within the chopper. The agent unfolded a map of the area and perused it carefully. After a few moments David raised his head and pointed toward the foothills.

"Thirty miles north is Hesperia but if we go south or east we won't hit any cities for at least seventy miles and west will take us back to the main road."

"The Mexicans would avoid any place where they might run into witnesses. " Nikki stated.

"Right." Colby agreed. "So we're talking south or east."

David nodded; decision made and turned to the pilot. "Take us south." he said, gesturing with the map.

The agent ordered the pilot to fly along the edge of the fields with hopes of spotting the trail of tire tracks. The odds were against it though; the tracks on the access trail had some protection from the wind by the plants, but out in the open, where the tracks were at the mercy of the wind, they would soon disappear, and with them, any chance of locating their friends and the little girl.

As if to remind them of its domain a sudden gust of wind broadsided the aircraft and buffeted it with sand giving them a small demonstration of its power; a warning to those who dared trespass in its territory.

Grimly, the team began to scour the desert floor.

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Halfway up the ridge Don had to stop and catch his breath; leaning wearily against the hillside for support. His shirt clung to him; sweat soaked from carrying Sammy and wearing the vest in the extreme heat. He pulled off his hat and wiped his forehead on his arm, hoping to cool off a little. Sammy raised her head and her arms loosened their hold around his neck.

"Don't…let…go sweetie." he rasped and began to fan both of them with his hat.

"O'kay." she said softly; tightening her hold again.

Don tried to slow down his rapid breathing and caught movement out of the corner of his eye; glancing sideways he winced as Charlie painfully edged his way over to them.

"How are… you doing?"

"Been…. better." Charlie responded breathlessly. "Are…you…okay?"

"Yeah….just winded."

Charlie looked upward, taking in the remaining trail to the ledge. "This…is…pathetic." he grumbled. "Any other…day…I would have climbed this, " he gestured weakly with his hand, "….in twenty…minutes flat."

"Any other day, " Don said bitterly, "we were both in better shape." His breathing was becoming steadier now and his body temperature was cooling down. Sammy didn't weigh much but the effort it took to climb combined with the heat was sapping all of his energy.

Charlie leaned against the hillside to relieve the pressure on his injured leg. The bandage appeared to be holding but his bare leg was already turning pink from the short exposure to the sun. He closed his eyes and kneaded the back of his neck in an effort to relieve a painful headache that was keeping in time with the throbbing of his leg. He opened his eyes to face the worried gaze of his brother.

"I'm okay Don." he said. "We need to go on."

"All right." Don agreed reluctantly. "We'll rest again when we get to the ledge." He sighed heavily and put on his hat. "Hold on tight Sammy."

It was a slow process, both brothers determined to reach the top despite the continuing downward spiral of their physical strength. Finally, after an interminable length of time, they neared the ledge but their relief was short lived; they had forgotten about the small rubble of stones that lay just in front of the overhang and as Don stepped forward he slipped and began to slide backwards.

The agent tried to yell out a warning but Charlie was following so closely behind him that he slid into his brother before he could get the words out. Charlie grunted in surprise and began to slide himself; the pole slipping from his grasp to roll end over end down the hillside. He frantically clutched at the shrubbery in a desperate attempt to halt not only his descent but Don and Sammy's as well. Finally, he was able to wedge one foot between two roots and brace the other against a rock. He pushed against Don's hip with one hand and clutched a small bush with the other; gritting his teeth, as he dug in to hold on while Don tried to pull himself up. His brother's foot slipped and slammed against his injured leg forcing a cry of pain to escape his lips.

"Hurry….I….can't hold on….much…longer." he pleaded as one foot slipped down a little.

Don strained to grab the root of a Joshua tree and almost sobbed with relief when he felt his hands close around it. "Got…it….hold...on Charlie." he grunted as he pulled himself upward; sweat beaded on his forehead and the veins in his neck were bulging from the force of his struggle.

"Grab…my…ankle." he managed to gasp out.

Charlie grabbed his ankle with one hand and pulled himself up with the other and as soon as he could get a good foot hold on the hillside he let go and slowly, inch by inch, he followed Don up to the ledge. Finally, on hands and knees, he crawled onto the overhang and collapsed to the ground next to Don and the little girl.

The agent unbuckled his belt, releasing Sammy, and shrugged out of the hot vest before slumping to the ground. His eyes flickered briefly toward his brother as his vision started to blur and he surrendered to his physical exhaustion. Don closed his eyes and lay flat on his back fighting against the pain running through him; it was as if every muscle in his body was on fire and he fought to control it, unwilling to succumb to the darkness that was closing in around him.

Wide-eyed and frightened, Samantha sat down between them, not sure what she should do next. The sound of the brother's rapid and ragged breathing resonating around the small area was scaring her even more. Close to tears and needing to feel safe she rested a hand on each of them to convince herself that they were okay.

Charlie rolled over on his back and patted Sammy's knee to try and reassure her; unable to speak as a sharp pain shot up his leg. He could feel something warm flowing from the gash and his fingers jerked back from the tender skin around the wound. His face screwed up in agony and he closed his eyes; waiting for the spasm to subside and return to the dull throbbing he had become accustomed too.

After a while Don stirred and pushed himself up. Still shaky from the strain of the climb, he stretched out a trembling hand to push Samantha's hair away from her face. "You okay sweetie?" he asked gently.

Still frightened, she climbed into his arms and he rubbed small circles on her back to calm her down. "It's okay now," he whispered softly, "we'll just rest a little bit before we go home."

His eyes fell on the prone figure of his brother, noting the pale face and pinched features and then drifted to the wound on his leg. The bandage around it had turned red and a small trickle of blood was trailing down his bare leg.

"You're bleeding again Charlie." he said unnecessarily as he lifted Samantha from his lap and sat her down next to his brother's head.

Charlie rolled his head to the side and met his eye briefly before sighing and pushing himself up on his elbows.

"I know." He mumbled, pulling himself up to a sitting position.

"Let me have the bag, I need to put a new bandage on it." Don's brow furrowed with worry as he studied the blood soaked rag wrapped around his brother's leg.

"Yeah….sure."

Charlie pulled the bag over his head and handed it to him before scooting backwards. He pressed his back against a boulder and looked around as the little girl scurried over to sit beside him. Charlie put an arm around her and tried to ignore the ache in his leg that seemed to intensify as Don removed the old bandages. He swallowed hard and looked away when his brother poured the remainder of the open water bottle over the wound.

"This isn't really a ledge, it's more like an overhang." he said in a shaky voice, trying to focus on something besides his injury. "And it's closer to the top than we thought."

The area was five feet across and resembled a small plateau with several boulders along the edge of the ridge providing a safe haven for climbers.

"Here." His brother said, offering him their last bottle of water.

Don pulled the remaining pieces of his jacket lining from the bag and wrapped it around the wound; pausing momentarily when Charlie drew in a sharp breath from the pain. He finished up, hoping that the dressing would last long enough to for them to get to a hospital.

"Sorry buddy." he muttered apologetically.

"It's okay." Charlie mumbled as he opened the water bottle and took a small sip before passing it to Sammy only to pull it from her lips a few seconds later after she had started to gulp it down.

"Want mowe." she said pleadingly, stretching out her hands for the bottle.

"I'm sorry Sammy, but we have to make it last." Charlie said thickly, as tears spilled down her cheeks. He looked away with difficulty and handed the bottle back to his brother.

Don had finished with his leg and was stuffing the old bandages back in the bag; careful not to leave any evidence behind.

"Is there a clean cloth left in there?" Charlie asked quietly. "Something that Sammy can use to wipe her eyes with?"

Without a word, Don took a drink and rummaged through the bag. "I think this will work." he said handing a small piece of cloth to the little girl. "Put it in your pocket when you finish, that way you'll have it if you need it again."

She wiped her eyes and blew her nose; looking from brother to brother and put the rag in her jeans pocket.

Don plopped down on her right side, keeping her safely between them. They had both taken on the duty of guardian for the little girl and although they had never discussed it, it had become a regular routine for them too make certain that she was always sitting between them, protected on both sides.

Sammy sniffed and lifted her head. "Hungwy Uncle Donnie. Can I please have a cookie?"

"Of course you can sweetie. " Don replied, immediately reaching into the bag to fulfill her request.

He handed her the cookie and got a smile for his efforts. She had him wrapped around her little finger, and he knew it too, but with those bright blue eyes and that little smile there was simply no way that he could ever say no to her.

"Ah…..Donnie." Charlie choked out; not even trying to hide his laughter. His big tough FBI brother had gone completely soft at the hands of a little five year old girl. "Can I have a cookie too?"

Don's head came up. "Yeah, sure." He said a little embarrassed, offering the cookie bag to his brother.

Charlie waved his hand dismissively. "That's okay, I've changed my mind. We better save them for Sammy."

"What? " Don asked, noticing the mischievous look in his younger sibling's eyes.

"Nothing." Charlie answered with a lopsided grin. "I wonder what Dad would say if he could see the besotted look on your face right now. "

"What does that mean?" Don asked suspiciously but was relieved to see some of the pain disappear from his brother's eyes.

"Only that after one look he would probably expect to see those grandchildren that he keeps talking about make an appearance pretty soon."

"Ha, ha Charlie. What about you?" Don grinned, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "It looks to me like Uncle Charlie is pretty smitten himself."

Charlie looked skyward and rolled his eyes. "Any who," he said changing the subject. "I think that we should probably get started again, don't you?"

Don agreed and stood up to stretch his back. "Listen, stay here for a minute, I'm going to go and check out the top of the ridge and see what it looks like on the other side" He hurried up the trail. "I'll be right back." He called out over his shoulder as he disappeared from view.

Charlie nodded tiredly and dropped his head back against the rock. He closed his eyes and draped an arm protectively around the little girl as he absently rubbed his injured leg. Sammy started to hum while she ate her cookie and he cocked his head, puzzling out the tune.

"You're singing our song again, huh?" he said teasingly.

She shook her head and grinned around her cookie. "Put one... foot in... fwont ..of the othew."

"You'll have to teach that song to me and Uncle Donnie when we get back home, if it's okay with your Mommy and Daddy, of course."

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"Desert 2 to Desert 1. Come in. Over." The radio crackled loudly in David's ear.

They had traveled south for thirty minutes without finding any sign of the missing truck and had turned east with hopes of locating it there.

David turned his head to his mike. "Desert 1. Go ahead."

"The wind has covered up most of the tire tracks , so far we can't tell which direction they took." Kinsey reported.

"Roger that." David responded, dispiritedly,

"We have found something of interest though. Over."

"What did you find? Over."

"When we couldn't find the tire tracks we started checking along the edges of the fields and we found some footprints. Two sets to be exact and they're coming out of the onion field. Over."

"Do they match the boot prints from the crime scenes? Over."

"Negative. One set looks like they could be sneaker tracks, the other looks a lot like treads of our own FBI issued boots. Forensics is on their way out. Over."

For the first time that morning David shared hopeful looks with his agents.

"Maybe Don and Charlie got away and Martinez and Chavez are chasing them." Colby said in a hopeful tone of voice.

David nodded his head in agreement. "Can you tell which direction the tracks are going in? Over."

"The sheriff says they could be heading for the foothills. Over."

David's brows knitted together. "Why the foothills? Over."

"Hesperia is just over the right lower ridge. If it's Agent Eppes and his brother they might be trying to find help. Over."

Liz leaned forward. "If it is Don and Charlie, why wouldn't they have taken the road? It would have been safer than walking across the desert."

Colby shook his head slowly. "Not if they thought that there was a good chance that they would be discovered."

"But they wouldn't stand a chance on the desert without supplies." Liz argued.

"There was a half empty box of groceries and an empty cooler back at the house." Nikki said, her eyes lighting up. "What if they took some supplies with them?"

"Stand by Desert 2." David ordered and leaned forward.

"Let's run this scenario. Suppose they knocked out Don and Charlie and tied them up in the basement."

"That would account for the spots of blood. There wasn't enough of it there to indicate a major wound." Liz tossed out.

"Chavez and Martinez tie them up and then realize that Don is a Federal Agent."

"So they decide that they'll have to kill them." Nikki added to the mix.

"Right." David said. "But first they have to get rid of the traceable evidence, anything with a GPS chip that we can track them with."

Colby picked up his thought. "Don and Charlie are out cold, tied up and not a threat so they take the car and ditch it, intending to come back later and finish them off."

Liz leaned forward excitedly. "Right, only our guys wake up and get loose, find the little girl, and escape before the Mexicans get back."

They were all grinning now, enjoying this scenario a lot better than their previous one.

"Desert 1 to Desert 2. Over."

"Go ahead Desert 1. Over."

"We think that Don and Charlie managed to get the little girl away from the Mexicans and are trying to get her to Hesperia. We're heading back to your location, stay where you are until we get there. We'll use that spot as our starting point and fly straight to the foothills. You guys can follow the same path by land. "

"Roger that Desert 1. We'll wait for you. Desert 2 Out."

David eagerly turned to the pilot and soon they were heading back to the farm. Twenty minutes later they were hovering over the other search vehicles. Together they set out toward the foothills but the helicopter quickly out distanced the ground vehicles as its occupants anxiously scanned the desert floor.

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Charlie's head came up in surprise when Don suddenly came crashing over the top of the ridge. The agent was in such a hurry that he craned his neck to look behind him to see if he was being chased by something. The young professor watched with concern as his brother stumbled and slid his way back down the trail.

Panting and out of breath, the agent landed on the small ledge, scrambling over to the boulder that Charlie and Sammy were sitting against. Don leaned over the rock, eyeing the desert behind them with his pocket binoculars. He had let his guard down, he realized; with no visible signs of pursuit, he had allowed himself to relax a little. The agent steadied his hand and followed the dust cloud of a fast moving vehicle; a truck that was heading straight for them.

"Charlie." he said tensely.

Alarmed by his brother's behavior he quickly took the hand that Don was offering and came painfully to his feet. He pushed the pain aside when Don handed him the binoculars.

Charlie's heart sank at the sight and he shared a worried look with his brother before turning back to watch the truck. Don covered his own eyes with his hand to cut down on the glare so that he could see better himself.

The young mathematician looked through the glass and swallowed hard. "Don, at the rate they're moving…"

"Yeah, I know." Don interrupted. "We've got to get going."

Curious, Sammy took a bite of her cookie and stood up, moving around Charlie while the brothers were busy talking. She was eager to see what they were looking at and the open ledge on the other side of him gave her an excellent view. She wandered dangerously close to the edge and mimicked Don's movements by putting her hand up above her eyes; pretending that she was Pocahontas from one of her favorite Disney movies.

Suddenly she lost her balance; the cookie falling unnoticed to the ground. Her arms wind milled at her side, and she cried out in terror as she teetered on the edge.

TBC


	22. Chapter 22

**Inner Peace**

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 1**

"_**In the blink of an eye, everything can be lost"**_

**Chapter 22:**

Charlie caught movement out of the corner of his eye before Sammy screamed and he turned just as she was beginning to topple over the ledge.

"Sammy nooooo!"

The young man screamed in horror and without a second thought dived headlong to try and catch her; his arms stretched forth, reaching for any part of the little girl that he could grab. Charlie managed to clutch just enough of the back of her shirt to stop her fall and pull Sammy back from the dangerous rim but the momentum sent him careening over the precipice.

In a desperate attempt to halt his fall Charlie clawed at the dry sand and rocks, vainly fighting against the gravity that was rapidly pulling him over the cliff. He barely managed to catch the top of the rim, but he did, and he held on with all of his remaining strength, holding on even when the lower half of his body slammed against the side of the rock face. Not only did the force of the blow take his breath away but his continuing motion slammed his good leg against a protruding rock; the sickening thud and simultaneous snap sent piercing tremors through his whole body. The searing pain radiating from his lower leg had his senses reeling and he fought the incapacitating spasms to remain conscious. The little air that he had left in his lungs burst forth in an agonizing scream and as his vision began to blur he tried to catch his breath; panting desperately to restore oxygen to his empty lungs before he passed out. But the painful tremors were winning the battle and he could feel his fingers slipping away from the edge of the cliff. Distantly he thought he heard his brother's voice but it slipped away as he drifted toward unconsciousness.

Charlie had obstructed Don's view of the little girl, so by the time he realized what was happening his brother was already in mid-dive, but even so, the agent had reacted swiftly. He caught Sammy when Charlie flung her backwards and set her down, ordering in a stern voice not to move as he hurried to the ledge.

Charlie!"

White-faced and fearing the worst, Don leaned over the cliff frantically searching for his brother and managed to grab one of Charlie's hands just as he lost his hold on the rim.

Charlie suddenly felt himself jerked upwards and with it a renewed stab of pain racked his body, dragging him back to semi-consciousness. He raised his head slowly, blinking his eyes as he tried to focus on his brother instead of the all-consuming pain that had become his world.

"Charlie….quick…give me your other hand!" Don yelled urgently; his hands were becoming sweaty and his brother's fingers were beginning to slip from his grasp. He hooked his foot under a root and recklessly leaned out farther over the edge. "Hurry Charlie! You've got to try! "

Don caught movement from the corner of his eye and his head swiveled quickly to check on the little girl; calling out to her when he saw her rising to her feet.

"Sammy!" Don warned sternly. "Stay where you are. Understand? I have to help Charlie."

The little girl gulped and sat back down, hugging her knees to her chest. "Kay." She whispered tearfully.

Satisfied that she would do as she was told, he quickly returned his full attention back to his brother. Charlie raised his pain-filled eyes and looked up at him as he tried but failed to catch Don's other hand.

"Come on buddy…try again." The agent pleaded desperately.

Grimly Charlie set his jaw and fought against the increasing pain in his leg to reach his brother, gasping in relief when his fingers closed around Don's hand.

"I've got you bro. Ready?"

Don grunted and gritted his teeth, refusing to give up as he frantically pulled his brother up to the fringe of the ledge. Slowly, inch by inch, he hauled Charlie back up, taking a break only when he had the young man's head and torso lying across the top of the cliff.

Keeping a firm grip on Charlie, Don doubled over him, trying to catch his breath; his own body trembling from the extreme effort that it had taken to pull his brother up. As his breathing began to return to normal, Don glanced sideways to check on the little girl and was relieved to see that she was still sitting in the same spot; her frightened eyes glued to the life and death struggle unfolding before her.

Regretfully, he couldn't spare any time for her right now, he had to get his brother to safety. His brow furrowed in concern, Charlie hadn't moved or said anything; he was just laying face down, his lower body hanging over the cliff.

"Charlie?"

No answer

"Charlie?" Don asked again, becoming uneasy with his silence. "Charlie I need you to pull with me. Okay?"

Too weak to answer, Charlie just nodded his head.

Don took turns wiping the sweat from his hands to get a better grip on his brother before attempting to tug him any further and rose to his feet without releasing Charlie's hands. He took a deep breath and a step backwards to get into position.

"Pull!"

Together they struggled and finally with one forceful jerk he dragged his brother back over the top of the ridge but before he could rejoice Charlie cried out in anguish, shuddered violently and collapsed in his arms.

Don carefully laid his unconscious brother on the ground and gently rolled him on his back. Anxiously he began to check him for injuries, letting his fingers run through his curls, feeling for any bumps or cuts that might be hidden there, anything that could explain his loss of consciousness. He looked deathly pale and his face and body were bathed in sweat but so far Don had been unable to discover the cause. Frantically, he checked his brother for injuries and inhaled a sharp breath when his eyes fell on Charlie's left leg; the lower part was bent at an odd angle.

"Oh, buddy." he whispered in dismay and squeezed his hand gently in sympathy. He pulled his pocket knife out and took a deep breath before cutting Charlie's remaining pant leg at the knee and spreading it open.

A dark bruise was already starting to spread across Charlie's shin and he gently felt for the break. The bone fragments hadn't pierced the skin so that was a good sign but he had to straighten out his leg and put some kind of splint on it. He glanced around and spied a couple of sticks that he could use and hurriedly collected them. For the first time, Don was relieved that Charlie was unconscious because he knew that what he was about to do would cause him excruciating pain but he also knew that he didn't have a choice, it had to be done.

Sammy had crawled over and was sitting quietly by Charlie's head; her small hands nervously playing with his curls as she watched Don cut the rest of the material away from Charlie's leg.

Don cut the fabric into strips and grabbed the sticks placing them near his brother's leg. Now came the hard part; he had to straighten out the injured leg. Don took a deep breath then grabbed Charlie's leg and gave it a hard yank, forcing the bones back in place. He winced when his actions elicited a moan from his brother but hurried on to tie the sticks to each side of his leg.

Charlie moaned again and his eyelids fluttered open; disoriented, he stared skyward, eyes unfocused and panted against the agonizing pain that was flaring up in waves from his leg.

"Charlie?"

Charlie didn't answer him, but closed his eyes as if he was trying to draw on some inner strength. He opened them a few minutes later and tried to sit up but only made it to his elbows. Don hurried over to lend a hand and sat down beside of him, offering support, but the younger man stretched his arms out behind him and leaned back as he gazed at his leg; pain crossed his features when he tried to move his left foot.

"Damn!" he whispered in agony.

Sammy chose that moment to crawl under his right arm and stretch her small arm across his chest, burying her face in his side.

"Sowwy…Sammy….sowwy." she cried.

"Shh….shh….it's okay." Charlie said soothingly, sitting up straighter so that he could hold her. "It wasn't…. your fault …Sammy." He swallowed hard and raised his eyes to meet his brother's.

"I think its broken Buddy." Don said softly.

"I know." He replied hoarsely. "I felt the bone snap when my leg slammed into a rock."

"I'll look for something that you can use for a crutch." Don started to get up but Charlie grabbed his arm.

"Don, there's no time." He stretched his hand out. "Help me stand up."

"Charlie I don't think that is a good idea." Don argued.

"Then I'll…do it myself." he retorted breathlessly.

Don held his hands up in submission; he knew that look, it would just be a waste of time, precious time that they had run out of.

Sammy pulled away and sat up next to him, watching quietly as Don helped Charlie rise to his feet, pulling his left arm over his shoulder so that he could help support him.

Charlie gingerly put his weight on his right leg and had barely touched the ground with his left foot before he jerked it back, crying out in pain.

"Oh, God!" He gasped, as the little color that had returned to his face began to disappear.

Don helped him sit back down again, this time with his back against the boulder for support.

When the spasm had passed Charlie raised his head slowly and stared at his brother's bowed head. Don knelt beside of him, rubbing his mouth thoughtfully and staring at his broken leg. He knew what Don was thinking, he was trying to come up with a way to get him and Sammy out of there, safely away from the Mexicans and home to LA. But it wasn't possible now and somehow he had to convince Don to take Sammy and leave him behind; it was the only way. "_It wasn't fair, he thought bitterly, "they had been so close_."

"Don." He said, as he looked up, his eyes clouded with pain. "You have to go on without me."

Surprise and then anger crossed his brother's features. "Forget it Charlie! I'm not leaving without you. There has to be another way!"

Don stood up and angrily stormed around the small area, scrubbing his hands through his hair in frustration as he glanced at the desert behind them. He could see the dust from the moving truck without the binoculars now. They were getting closer and he broke out in a sweat; he had to figure something out, and he had to do it fast.

"Don."

The agent refused to listen but kept scanning the area like he was going to find the solution to their problem.

"You were right Charlie." he said pointing to the top of the mountain. "Just over that ridge is Hesperia. I could see the road from up there and the other side isn't as rocky or as steep as this one is. It won't take us that long to get down to the desert and then we'll only have a couple of hundred yards to get to the road."

"Don." Charlie begged. "Please listen to me."

Sammy had once again wrapped her arms around him and he hugged her closely, trying to forget the sharp pains in his leg. He kissed her gently on the forehead and looked up as his brother came over and stood near him. Charlie stretched out his hand and grabbed Don's forearm, pulling him down to his level.

"Don, please. You've got to get Sammy out of here. Promise me that you'll get her home."

Don didn't answer him and Charlie could see the war that was raging inside of him; his eyes were troubled and clouded with turmoil.

"Charlie. I…I….can't just leave you here. The Mexicans will kill you if they find you!"

"I can't make it Don." he said quietly, unshed tears gleaming brightly in his eyes. "And you can't carry both of us out of here." He grabbed Don's hand and squeezed it tightly. "Look." He said frantically at his brother's silence. "It's the only logical answer."

Don sat unmoving, but his hold on Charlie's hand tightened.

The young man's eyes lit up suddenly. "I have an idea. " Charlie said pointing to his left. "I can hide. I saw a crevice on the other side of that rock along the trail. You can help me over there and I'll be hidden from view."

Don released his hand and rose to his feet and without a word strode over to the trail and studied the crevice that Charlie was referring to. He scrubbed a hand through his hair and walked slowly back to his brother's side, squatting down next to him.

"Give me the numbers Charlie." Don said intensely, holding his gaze.

The young mathematician's breath quickened. Numbers? Of course, Don wanted the odds of success before he made his decision. His mind raced, so many variables to consider, too many unknown factors….but he had to come up with something or Don wouldn't leave.

"Ah…give me a minute to think." He rubbed his forehead as he thought it over and then gave him an answer. "Sixty per cent Don, there's a sixty per cent chance that it will work."

Don grunted. "Those aren't very good odds Charlie."

"It's better than when we started, remember? We only had a fifty per cent chance that we would even survive the walk across the desert…and here we are. "

He was losing the argument, Charlie could tell by his brother's stern expression and his physical demeanor; his muscles taut and unyielding.

"Don!" Charlie pleaded desperately. "It will work. They won't even consider that we would stop to hide."

The agent glanced sideways at the little girl but remained silent.

"Don, please!"

Charlie grabbed his brother's hands and squeezed them hard, drawing his attention back to him.

"Please!" Charlie's expressive eyes were full of pain and desperation as he waited for him to make a decision. "Please Don. Please get Sammy out of here….do it for me.. please!"

Finally Don bowed his head in defeat; the decision tearing his heart apart as he agreed to Charlie's plan.

"Are you sure?" he whispered, his voice thick with emotion. At Charlie's nod, he cleared his throat and clasped his brother's hand in both of his. "All right then." he sighed resignedly, "Let me help you up."

Charlie gritted his teeth to hold back a cry of pain as Don helped him to his feet. He knew his brother was already feeling responsible for his injury and he didn't want to give him anything else to feel guilty about. He paused a moment to get his breath and leaned heavily against Don.

Suddenly, Samantha grabbed his right leg and he felt a twinge of pain as the top of her head brushed against his wound. He took a deep breath and cupped her chin gently, tilting it up so he could see her eyes.

"Sammy." He said quietly, trying his best to keep the quiver out of his voice. "You be a good girl for Uncle Donnie. Okay?"

She nodded her head up and down.

"That's a good girl. Now I want you to go and sit down by that rock and stay there until Uncle Donnie comes for you. Will you do that for me?"

"Okay." She answered quietly and let him go. She walked over to the rock, sitting down with her back against it and once again brought her knees up to her chest, hugging them tightly. Samantha's blue eyes stared somberly back at them as her head swiveled to follow their progress across the small clearing.

Don and Charlie kept glancing in her direction while they slowly worked their way over to the gap in the rocks.

"Are you sure about this?" Don asked one last time. "We might be able to figure out something else."

Charlie swallowed hard. "I'm sure Don."

Don gently lowered his brother into the crevice and watched as he shifted around until he was able to get fairly comfortable.

The agent climbed back up to the trail to see if he could see his brother and was relieved to find out that he couldn't see him at all. He hurried over to the rock and grabbed the bag containing the rest of their things, telling Samantha to stay put for a few minutes longer as he climbed back down to the fissure. He knelt down beside of Charlie and handed him the water and the cookies, placing the bag behind his brother's head like a pillow.

"You keep these things, we won't need them. If you get cold, at least you'll have the blanket." He said and looked away.

"Don, whatever happens, this is the right thing to do." Charlie's voice choked up when he saw the unshed tears in his brother's eyes. "You have nothing to feel guilty about." he said earnestly. "This is my choice…remember that."

"I'll be back for you Charlie. You just stay still so they don't find you." Don said, swallowing hard. "I better go." But before he moved, he grabbed his brother in a fierce hug and whispered. "Promise me that you'll wait for me."

"I won't go anywhere until you come for me. " Charlie promised, returning his hug and said sadly.

"Don….just in case….tell Dad that I ..you know … …now go. Go before it's too late!" He added desperately and looked away, afraid that Don would see his tears.

"Yeah ." Don gave him one last squeeze and reluctantly pulled away.

He climbed back up to the trail and hurried over to Sammy, kneeling down to put on the vest.

"Come here sweetie." Don said in a subdued voice. She climbed on his back and he awkwardly wrapped the belt around her and buckled it across his chest before rising to his feet.

Sammy wrapped her arms around his neck and Don walked over to the edge of the trail. He locked eyes with Charlie and his gaze spoke volumes, it spoke of deep regret and brotherly love, of friendship, of respect for one another and something even deeper; a bond that nothing would ever break. No words were necessary, just a silent nod of acknowledgement between them.

"I'll be back for you Charlie." He said in a voice choked with emotion.

"I know you will." Charlie replied, trying to keep his voice strong for his brother. "You better get going." He swallowed hard. "I'll see you soon."

Don said shakily. "Yeah, see you soon."

The agent turned then and dashed up the trail. He paused at the top and looked back, his eyes drifting to the desert floor below him. The sight of the truck sent a shiver of fear down his spine because he didn't have to see who was in it to know who it was; there was no doubt in his mind that it was the two Mexicans.

Fear hastened his steps as he began his descent. Fear for his brother and fear for the little girl. He had to hurry…. hurry for Sammy but most of all he had to hurry and get back to Charlie.

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Juan came to a sudden stop at the base of the foothills, forcing the truck to slide sideways in the dry sand before coming to a complete standstill. He grabbed his rifle and jumped out of the truck with Rico close on his heels.

"Spread out and look for any tracks leading to the hills." he ordered tersely, scanning the sandy soil.

It didn't take them long to discover the brothers campsite and Juan knelt down to study the tracks in the sand.

He looked up at his cousin with a triumphant grin. "I told you they came this way. Two sets of men's footprints and over here is a kid's print." He stood up suddenly and began to follow their trail.

"They headed this way to get to the hills." he said gruffly, pointing with his rifle. "We have to follow them on foot from here. Come on, let's get our stuff."

Rico glanced at the tracks and smiled wolfishly as he followed Juan back to the truck. Finally, after two days of putting up with Juan's insults he was going to take back the little girl and punish the two men responsible for taking her away from him.

"Hurry up Rico, we don't have all day! " Juan ordered impatiently as he draped his canteen across his chest.

"I'm ready." Rico grumbled, pulling his own canteen over his head and falling in step behind his cousin.

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"There sure are a lot of strange rock formations out here." Nikki commented dryly.

"It's the Mojave. You see all kind of strange things in the desert, especially if you've been out here for a while." muttered Colby as he moved his binoculars to see what Nikki was looking at.

His forehead wrinkled in puzzlement and he removed the binoculars from his eyes. "That looks familiar for some reason, but I can't quite place it."

David's head swiveled toward him as he pulled his glasses down. "Have you got something?"

"I'm not sure. Take a look at this."

Nikki moved out of the way so that David could get a closer look. The formation was partially blocked by a small knoll so the agent ordered the pilot to maneuver directly over the rocks.

"Well I'll be dammed." David said as he looked up and held Colby's gaze. "I know what that is and I know who put it there." His face broke into a grin as Colby's eyes lit up.

Nikki exchanged a puzzled look with Liz and then asked. "Do you two care to share?"

"Ladies, that rock formation represents the mathematical symbol for Pi." David announced with a broad smile.

Nikki's mouth dropped open at the same time as Liz exclaimed in amazement. "Charlie! Charlie put it there to let us know that they went this way!"

"Look." David said, nodding at the rocks. "There's an arrow in front of it pointing toward the foothills." He leaned forward and ordered the pilot to set them down so that they could get a closer look just in case the Eppes brothers had left any other messages.

The chopper set down and the heat hit the team full force as soon as they slid the door open. David adjusted his glasses and gun at the ready he jumped to the ground, running for cover behind a large boulder. The rest of the team followed and soon they had cleared the area.

"Spread out, see if you can find any other evidence that Don and Charlie were here."

"Hey guys." Liz called out from the edge of the rocks. "Check this out." She halted them a few feet from her position. "Look here." She said pointing to a small footprint and then to two different sets of men's footprints. "Don, Charlie's and Samantha's, and they're all heading off in that direction."

She stood up and dusted the sand from her knees.

"I don't how they did it." She added exultantly. "But Don and Charlie somehow managed to get that little girl away from Chavez and Martinez."

"Yeah." David said quietly. "And they've been out here walking in this heat for two days trying to keep her and themselves out of harm's way." He squinted up at the bright sun and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Man, I sure hope they had some water with them." Colby said worriedly.

"I think they have bigger problems than that Granger." Nikki called out from the far side of Charlie's symbol.

The other three agents hurried over and looked closely at a partial print of a tire tread; a tread that they had become very familiar with.

"I'm starting to get tired of seeing these tracks." Colby muttered. He squatted down to check the tire treads closer and then tilted his head up so he could see David's face. "The wind has almost completely blown them away….they're not far behind them."

"Yeah, I got that." He turned and headed back to the helicopter. "Let's go, we have some catching up to do."

Shortly thereafter the helicopter rose up and continued on its original path toward the foothills. Its occupants were already scanning the desert floor for more signs of their friends.

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Charlie watched as Don and Sammy disappeared over the ridge; his heart filling with trepidation. He shifted his position slightly and immediately regretted it when a sharp pain shot up his leg. The pain was bearable as long as he didn't move his leg and as he had discovered, the slightest movement could bring about a painful muscle spasm.

He took a deep slow breath to steady his nerves and closed his eyes, willing himself to calm down and his thoughts turned back to his brother. It had been the right thing to do; there had been no other options open to them. Yet, he yearned with all of his heart to be with them and he had to fight a sudden terrifying sense of panic and control the overwhelming urge to call his brother back. He had forced Don to go on without him but it had still cut him to the quick to be left behind.

"_The plan could work." _He muttered half-heartedly as he tried to convince himself that he wasn't facing imminent death.

Charlie had not been totally truthful with Don when he had given him the odds of his survival. It wasn't that he had lied to him exactly; he had just omitted a few facts. Logically the men chasing them wouldn't expect anyone to be hiding along the trail and they would have figured out where the brother's were going and would be in a hurry to stop them. What Charlie had neglected to tell Don was that the sixty per cent chance had been in the favor of the Mexicans and that if they chose that very spot to stop and rest their odds increased substantially.

"_Still," _Charlie told himself stubbornly. "_A forty percent chance was better than nothing and he just might still be alive when Don came back." _

He sighed heavily and closed his eyes. At least there was one consolation, this way Don and Samantha just might have a chance to get away, albeit a slim one, but still a chance.

TBC

A/N: I will be out of town this coming weekend but I will do my best to have Chapter 23 posted on the 28th of September.


	23. Chapter 23

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: see Chapter 1

A/N: I truly appreciate all of your reviews and alerts.

Chapter 23:

The blazing sun and pristine blue sky seemed to mock Don as he threaded his way down the mountainside. It was as if a dark cloud had descended over him, cutting him off from everything bright and warm, replacing it with a mind numbing cold that flowed through his veins. Suddenly he shuddered and his footsteps faltered as a chilling sensation of impending doom coursed through his body; a gut feeling telling him that he had made the wrong decision. His thoughts were dark and desperate. How had it come to this? Each step that he took was tearing him apart and no matter what scenarios he thought of they all failed…all of them but one and that one left his brother injured and alone, on the other side of the ridge.

The agent was appalled over the possibility that he may have just left his brother to die at the hands of the Mexicans and terrified that he wouldn't be able to keep Samantha safe and get her home to her family.

Don put his head down and concentrated on the trail, trying not to think about what he was doing, trying to ignore that accusing voice in his head that kept repeating over and over that he had deserted Charlie and left him behind to die. Visions plagued him as he continued down the ridge; visions of their childhood, their college years where they had drifted apart and then the most recent years where they had found common ground once again and had sealed the gap between them. He couldn't believe that he was doing this…. that the circumstances had deteriorated to the point where he had been given no other choice but to leave him behind and more than once he had to wipe a stray tear from his cheek.

Samantha stirred, pulling herself up higher on his back until her small chin rested on his shoulder and was surprised to discover that she was crying; her silent tears mixing in with the sweat that was trickling down his neck. He hadn't realized that leaving Charlie behind was having such a traumatic effect on her, until now, but then he told himself he shouldn't be surprised. First she had been taken from her mother and handled roughly by the Mexican, chloroformed and when she woke up she found herself out in the middle of nowhere with two more strange men.

"_It could be a form of Stockholm Syndrome," he mused, "only identifying with her rescuers instead of her captors." _

She had experienced a sense of care and safety with the brothers and now Charlie was gone. He had been the first one to bond with her after she had awakened that first night; the first one to protect and comfort her. He sighed inwardly, no wonder she was upset; it certainly explained why she was holding her hands so tightly around his neck. Occasionally he would have to stop and have her loosen her hands just a little but she was scared and her grip would tighten up again after only a few minutes, then he would have to repeat the process all over again. Don couldn't blame her though; he was scared too, more frightened than he had ever been in his life ….but not for himself.

The little girl had been silent but spoke up suddenly as if she could read his thoughts.

"Uncle Chawlie?" Samantha mumbled tearfully. "Want ….Uncle Chawlie."

"I know." Don's voice choked up and he gently patted her hands. "I do to. We'll come back for him…I promise."

He was a quarter of the way down and paused on an outcropping to study their path and his eyes drifted to the desert floor. He was heartened by the sight of the highway and houses at "the mesa's" edge.

"Just like Charlie predicted." He mumbled. "Look Sammy." He said pointing toward the houses. "We'll get help there. We'll call your Mommy and Daddy and we'll bring help back for Uncle Charlie too."

"Pwomise." She whispered in his ear.

"Promise." Don said, trying to convince himself that it was true as he scrambled down the hillside.

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"There." David said pointing at the base of the foothills. "That's got to be Chavez's truck."

The agent leaned forward to talk to the pilot. "Set us down a few yards behind that vehicle."

He turned his head to his mike. "Desert 1 to Desert 2. What is your position? Over."

"Twenty minutes from the foothills. Over."

"Chavez's truck is parked at the base of the mountain. We're going to check it out. Over."

The powerful rotor blades whipped the sand around as the helicopter's wheels met the desert floor. Colby slid the door open and the four agents disembarked, following the two members of the S.W.A.T. team. Guns at the ready, they huddled against the side of the chopper and perused the area while the rotors powered down.

Scattered rocks, sagebrush and Joshua Trees dotted the open expanse; some of them thick enough to conceal a person. The helicopter became silent and cautiously they moved forward, scanning rocks and bushes for any kind of movement. Suddenly they heard a rustling sound and the agents moved as one; quickly taking cover they aimed their guns toward a dense cluster of cactus and Yucca Scrub.

"This is the F.B.I." David yelled from behind a Joshua tree. "Come out with your hands in the air. "

There was no answering response; only an eerie silence greeted the agents.

Sinclair gave a hand signal to Colby and Liz. They bent low and circled around behind the area while the S.W.A.T team moved in from the sides.

All at once, a road runner darted out of the dense growth and madly raced across the hot sands to get away from the strange, metal bird and its companions.

A collective sigh of relief was heard all around as the agents resumed their search for the Mexicans.

"Not so barren from down here. " Colby snorted defensively.

"Yeah." Nikki agreed, still following the road runner's flight. "That is one lucky bird."

"Spread out." David ordered quietly, interrupting the agents. "Colby and I will take the truck."

Warily they made their way to the rear of the vehicle; crouching down they each took a side and crept to the doors of the truck.

"Now!" Sinclair whispered into his mike and as one they jumped to their feet and pressed the muzzle of their guns against the door windows. Even though there was a fine coating of sand on the glass they could still see that the cab was empty; simultaneously they opened the doors.

A map of the desert lay open on the seat, along with several empty water bottles. Colby pulled a plastic glove from his pocket and unzipped a small satchel lying on the floor. He thumbed through the contents before picking out two passports and several stacks of hundred dollar bills.

The agent raised his head and grimly met his partner's eyes. "Looks like they're planning on leaving the country. "

"Yeah." David agreed somberly. "After they've taken care of a couple of loose ends."

Colby stuffed the items back in the bag and followed Sinclair around to the back of the truck.

"A couple of duffel bags, a suitcase and a cooler." David catalogued the items he found there. "And two broken shovels." he added thoughtfully, nodding at the tools.

Nikki wandered over. "You don't think they've already…." she couldn't finish the sentence.

"I think if they had they would be on their way across the border right now."

"So we still may have a chance." she said, relieved.

Colby shrugged. "Maybe."

"Hey guys. Check this out." Liz called from a cluster of rocks at the base of the ridge.

"Take a look at this." She said, kneeling down to show them several pieces of charred wood that had been scattered across an opening in the rocks.

David and Nikki squatted down to take a look while Colby entered the cave.

"I found ..." Suddenly she stopped speaking; turning her face and covering it with her hands as the wind picked up and hit them with sand. When the breeze died down she turned and finished telling them about her discovery. "There are two sets of men's footprints and one that belongs to the little girl."

"It looks like they might have spent the night here." Colby said coming out into the light. "I found Don's watch in there and more of their tracks."

David stood up and strode into the cave, pulling out his flashlight to get a closer look. "There are lots of paw prints in here too." He mused out loud as he moved toward a spot near the entrance and knelt down. "This looks like dried blood…one of them is hurt."

"It could be animal blood." Liz tossed out hopefully.

"Maybe."

"And what is that crusty stuff all over Don's watch?" Nikki grimaced, nodding at the object lying on the cave floor.

David rubbed his chin and shrugged. "Not a clue. We'll have to leave that one for the forensics team."

"Agent Sinclair?"

David turned his head to his mike. "Yeah, go ahead."

"Jackson here sir. We've found a number of footprints and a trail to follow."

The agent shared an excited look with his team and quickly stepped out of the cave.

"What's your location?" he asked, scanning the area.

"North side of the truck sir."

"On our way. Out."

It didn't take them long to find the S.W.A.T team and soon they had all gathered at the beginning of a group of rolling hills leading up to the ridge.

"They're definitely headed for the other side of the ridge." Jackson stated unnecessarily.

Robertson, the other team member pointed to another pair of tracks. "And they have company."

"Martinez and Chavez." David muttered grimly.

"How long ago do you think they were made?" Liz asked anxiously.

The officer shrugged. "Maybe an hour for the Mexicans tracks. The wind has had more time to blow Agent Eppes's prints away, so I'm guessing maybe two hours for his group." He glanced at the lead agent. "Chavez and Martinez are moving a lot faster than our guys."

David readjusted the Kevlar vest over his tee shirt and grimaced, somehow the sand had gotten underneath his shirt and the heavy vest was rubbing his sweat-soaked shirt against his skin. He pulled off his FBI cap and rubbed his hand over his bald head before saying anything.

"We go on foot from here…I don't want to spook them with the chopper." he said looking each one of them in the eye. "Johnson, Robertson, you take the lead."

They headed out with David relaying orders to the pilot as they followed the trail of footprints over the hills.

"Remain here. The rest of the S.W.A.T. team and the Sheriff will be along in twenty minutes. Stay on alert; we may have to get out of here fast."

"Roger that. " The pilot responded and pulled out a pair of binoculars; following the team as they headed over the rolling hills.

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Charlie shifted, trying to get more comfortable without moving his broken leg. His part of Samantha's rescue had ended abruptly on the hillside and now he could only wait and hope that Don and Sammy would make it to safety and get back before the Mexicans found him.

He closed his eyes and exhaled a shaky breath then leaned his head back against the rock; fighting against the searing pain in his leg to stay focused to any sounds that would alert him of the Mexicans passage.

The call of a hawk resounded through the air and his eyes fluttered open; following the path of the bird across the sky. He pushed his wet curls back with a trembling hand as it flew out of sight and sighed heavily.

"_If only I had wings." he thought dreamily. "I could just fly away from here and leave all of this behind me. " _A lopsided grin crossed his features as a thought occurred to him. _"See Amita, I can be whimsical too."_

He frowned, his brow furrowing in puzzlement. What was happening? He was losing his concentration and his thoughts were becoming jumbled. Was it the pain or the heat that was causing him to become disoriented…and lightheaded, he added as the sun took a spin above him. He swallowed hard and closed his eyes, hoping to find the ball of light stationery when he reopened them.

The part of Charlie's mind that was still rational knew that he couldn't afford to lose his hold on reality; he stood a better chance of being discovered if he started behaving irrationally. He strained his ears, listening for any kind of noise, anything that would help him hold on to sanity but the mocking wail of the wind was the only sound to reach his ears.

He ran his tongue over his cracked lips, resisting the urge to take another drink of water, knowing full well that in his current state of mind he would probably empty out the bottle. The dry, hot air blew across his face, stirring his curls but offering very little in the way of relief.

Charlie rubbed at his forehead, trying to will his body to fight its weakening condition but it was a losing battle and he began to drift in and out of consciousness.

He awakened with a start, frantically trying to get his mind in order and control his reeling senses. By taking deep breaths he was able to slow his rapidly beating heart and clear his mind enough to think clearly.

How long had it been since Don had left? Thirty minutes….forty maybe, he couldn't be sure but he thought that was about right. He briefly thought of his watch, but dismissed it almost immediately; he just didn't have the energy to pull it from his pocket.

His thoughts drifted back to their situation. It had taken them an hour to get to this spot on the trail but they had both been exhausted and weak from their ordeal, plus they had been carrying Samantha. He strongly suspected that their pursuers were both healthy and well-rested and would be able to climb the ridge at a much greater speed, so the more time that Don had to get away, the better.

Charlie stiffened up suddenly at the sound of thudding feet and heavy breathing. Stones rattled down the hillside and muttered curses echoed across the small cliff top as Juan and Rico stopped to catch their breaths only a few feet from his hiding place.

"_No." He thought in a panic. _"_It's too soon! Don hasn't had enough time to get a good head start." _Panic stricken Charlie tried to become smaller and shrank even further into the small crevice; barely breathing as he listened to the men on the trail.

"Hurry up Rico!" Juan growled angrily.

"Just a minute while I catch my breath."The older man retorted irritably.

Juan stomped impatiently around the small space anxious to move on.

"We should turn back." Rico whined. "They're probably already in Hesperia. " He pulled his canteen over his shoulder and took a long drink; sitting down against the same rock that the Eppes brothers had been leaning against earlier.

"No they're not." Juan responded smugly. "Look over here."

He knelt down and picked up a small piece of a chocolate chip cookie. "You think this cookie got here all by itself. It's still soft too; they haven't been gone very long." He tossed it back to the ground and added. "We can still catch them."

Charlie groaned inwardly; they had tried so hard not to leave any trail for the Mexicans to follow but in the course of his injury, neither he nor Don had taken the time to make sure that the area was clear.

"All right all right." Rico said as he came to his feet. "But I don't know why you are so worried. If you're right, they aren't that far ahead of us and you've got that rifle. It will be easy for you to pick them off from up here. "

"What is wrong with you man? We have to finish this and get out of here." Juan adjusted his rifle and started up the path toward the ridge.

Mumbling to himself, Rico moved to follow him.

Charlie was in a panic; Don and Samantha wouldn't have enough time to cross "the mesa" before the Mexicans made it to the ridge. Juan would shoot them down within sight of Hesperia.

He had to do something to slow them down, some kind of diversion to give Don more time. Desperately he grabbed a handful of stones and tossed them over the side of the ridge, trying to make them hit as far away from his hiding place as possible. Heart-hammering in his chest he listened as the two men stopped moving on the trail and retraced their steps back to the cliff.

"Did you hear that?" Juan asked suspiciously.

Rico nodded his head. "Yeah. Sounded like it was on the trail below us. Do you think they were hiding and doubled back?"

Juan looked up toward the ridge and then shifted his eyes to the trail below them. "Maybe. We better go take a look. "

They started back down the trail to check out the noise while Charlie breathed a sigh of relief. He closed his eyes and silently willed them to keep moving but a cold shiver of fear ran up his spine when his eyes fluttered open and he met the cold steely eyes of the two Mexicans.

With a smile twisting his mouth, Juan nudged Rico with his elbow.

"Well now, just look what we have here."

TBC


	24. Chapter 24

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: You guys are awesome! Thank you so much for your reviews.

Chapter 24:

"_Halfway down now." he told himself, "just keep going, and don't look back. " _

The slope of the ridge was becoming more gradual making his descent easier. Don staggered to a stop to catch his breath and turned to look over his shoulder; his gaze lingering on the top of the mountain. His sight only took him to the crest but in his mind's eye he could he see further; he could still see his brother lying hidden among the rocks just over the rim.

Charlie was still in the same position that he had left him in; lying in the crevice, a bandage wrapped around his right thigh and a splint tied to his lower left leg. Pain and fear was etched into his features and yet his expressive eyes were begging him to take the little girl and run….and so he had…but at the cost of his soul for he knew full well that if his brother died on that mountainside … so would he. The person that Don Eppes had become would cease to exist….replaced by a man that would be torn apart by grief and guilt, leaving nothing but a hollowed out shell.

Reluctantly, he looked away and forced his feet to move again, telling himself that the sooner he made it to the road, the sooner he could return with help for Charlie.

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"We need him awake Rico!" Juan yelled angrily shoving the older man away from the unconscious mathematician. "Leave the leg alone until we find out where the others are!"

After discovering Charlie hidden on the hillside, the two Mexicans had roughly hauled him up to the cliff top. Their harsh treatment had sent him reeling into unconsciousness only to be revived a few minutes later when they splashed water on his face. He was just regaining his senses when Rico asked him where the little girl was but before he could come up with an answer the man had impatiently kicked his broken leg, once again sending him into oblivion.

"Give me your canteen." The younger man demanded, holding out his hand.

"Use your own!" Rico snapped, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his jeans.

"I said give it to me!" Juan yelled. "I used mine the last time and since it's your fault he's out again, its only fair that we use your water." He narrowed his eyes at the older man.

"Don't push me Rico." His voice had taken on a dangerous edge, prompting the other man to quickly hand it over.

Without another word Juan snatched the canteen and knelt down next to the injured man. He poured water over his face and lightly tapped his cheeks to wake him up and when he showed signs of waking Juan ordered Rico to help him prop the mathematician in a sitting position against the rock.

A low moan escaped Charlie's lips as he regained consciousness. His head lolled to the side and his eyes fluttered open as the refreshing liquid spilled over his face; his lips instinctively trying to catch some of the precious water. He felt something pressed to his lips and he hungrily swallowed the liquid, relishing the relief that it brought to his parched throat. His respite was short-lived however; as he became aware of his surroundings the pain and fear came along with it.

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Robertson raised a hand to halt the team at the bottom of a steep incline while Johnson moved a head to survey their path. He joined the group a few minutes later to inform them of his observations.

The S.W.A.T member knelt down and picked up a stick to draw a map in the sand. The four agents joined him while Robertson maintained a look out.

"Agent Sinclair." he said. "There are a lot of tracks heading up the side of the mountain. I found some belonging to Agent Eppes and his brother along with those of the two Mexicans. I didn't find any tracks that belonged to the little girl so one of them must be carrying her. See those large rocks near the crest?" he asked pointing to them with the stick. "It looks like it could be some kind of ledge and from what I can tell all the tracks lead up to that point." He glanced at the agents. "Its steep but I don't think we'll have trouble climbing it."

David turned, tilting his head upwards to study the hillside. "Did you see any other way to get up there?"

Johnson shook his head. "Negative."

Colby had been studying the boulders near the top of the ridge. "That would be a good place to lay a trap."

David rubbed his chin. "It would, but I don't think they know we are on their trail. I think they would have tried to pick us off before now." He turned back to Johnson. "It looks to me like the boulders hide the path up to the ledge so if anyone is up there they wouldn't be able to see us coming."

Johnson shook his head in agreement. "We'll have to do it quietly, especially when we get closer to the ledge."

"Agreed." David said standing up and walking toward the trail. The others followed and waited for Johnson to take the lead.

Sinclair took a deep breath. "Okay…let's do this."

In single file they quietly headed up the mountainside with Johnson leading them and Robertson bringing up the rear.

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Disoriented, Charlie swallowed hard and tried to focus on the two men in front of him; his heart hammering so loudly in his ears that he could barely hear what they were saying.

Juan Chavez squatted in front of him, a rifle slung over his shoulder while his cousin hovered behind him.

"Glad you could join us gabachO." He said coldly, letting his gaze drift over the young man's body. "You don't look so good man."

"Been…..better." Charlie rasped out warily in a barely audible voice; mentally trying to prepare himself for the pain that was sure to come.

"I could put you out of your misery man…..make it quick… or I could let Rico have you and you will suffer more before you die." he shrugged indifferently. "Answer my questions and I will end it for you." Juan pulled a gun from the waistband of his jeans and pressed it against the mathematician's forehead. "One bullet …boom….no more pain."

"_So this it, the end of my life_." Charlie thought as his eyes fearfully tracked the gun the Mexican casually waved in front of him. He felt numb inside and yet surprised that he wasn't more frightened. In the end he decided that the pain overshadowed everything, even his fear of dying.

"Don't answer my questions and Rico will get to have some fun." Juan continued on, shrugging his shoulders again. "It makes no difference to me man."

"Pegale!" Martinez hissed at Juan.

"Cierra La Boca!!!" Juan retorted angrily, turning his head sideways to glare at his cousin, daring him to start an argument. The older man jammed his hands back into his pockets and stormed to the other side of the clearing.

"Where is your hermano..your brother?" He asked turning back to face Charlie.

"I….I don't know." he responded quietly, trying not to flinch from the man's menacing gaze.

"I think you do." Juan leaned closer. "Is he hiding somewhere with the little girl or is he heading over the mountain?"

Charlie swallowed bile and looked away. "I…told…you. I don't know where they are."

The Mexican grabbed him by the chin, jerking his head back around to face him. "You are lying!" he snarled. "Why do you protect him? Your own brother left you here to die."

Charlie jerked his head back, freeing himself of the Mexican's grasp and raised his chin defiantly; his eyes meeting those of the angry man. He knew full well that his next words might be his last but he didn't care; if he was going to die then it was going to be on his terms not theirs.

"My brother…has…taken the child somewhere safe. Somewhere that ….you will never…find her." Anger was reflected in his eyes now as he added. "And he didn't…leave me here…to die. He did what…he had…to do." he said, ending a little breathlessly.

Juan's mouth twisted in a sneer as he rose to his feet. His fingers brushed his goatee thoughtfully as he studied the mathematician, noting the resolve in the injured man's eyes.

"Idiota." he said contemptuously. "Si te mueres." He turned away and thumbed a finger at the older man. "He's all yours primo."

Charlie closed his eyes in anticipation of what was coming and felt instant pain as Rico yanked him to his feet and slammed his body against the boulder. His face paled and he had to steady himself against the rock, hobbling on one leg as the Mexican rained blow after blow to his chest. His vision began to blur and he felt himself sliding sideways until he was pulled up by his shirt. Despite the pain he grimaced as a breath that smelled of nicotine and tequila blew across his face.

"Tell me where they went!" Rico yelled and then shook him hard.

"Don't …..know." Charlie barely managed to gasp out.

"Te voy a romper en pedazos!" Angrily, Rico grabbed the mathematician and threw him against the rock.

The side of Charlie's head hit the edge of the rock and he groaned as he crumpled to the ground. He tried to curl in a ball to protect his chest but Rico was still able to deliver a vicious kick to his ribs and Charlie felt something give within his chest. Distantly he realized that a few of his ribs had been broken but it was a fleeting thought as darkness gathered at the edges of his mind. He lay panting against the agony as the two men argued above him.

Juan came up behind Rico. "Ya Basta. Matenio!

Rico snarled. "I'm not done with him yet. You promised that I could kill one of them…this one is mine!"

"This is a waste of time!" Juan shouted, his cold eyes falling upon the mathematician. "He's not going to tell you anything."

He adjusted the rifle more comfortably over his shoulders and glanced at the top of the ridge. "I've had enough of this Rico. I'm going on and see if I can spot them on the other side. "

"I'm not done yet." Rico growled his eyes dark and seething with rage. It was time for someone to pay for the insults that he had endured from his cousin, for the frustration he had felt with the loss of the child and for the fact that he now had to return to Mexico.

"Kill him and follow me!" Juan grabbed the other man's arm impatiently. "I mean it.! Hurry it up! We need to finish this! "

Rico shrugged out of his cousin's grasp. "Go ahead. I'll be right behind you."

Vete al infierno!" Juan angrily retorted as he stormed away from his cousin and without another look back he climbed the remaining distance to the crest and continued his search for Don and Samantha.

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The agents were almost to the boulders when Johnson gave the signal to halt.

"There are voices up ahead. Our hostiles could be on the ledge. " He said quietly in his mike.

"Quiet! " David ordered. "Let's see if we can figure out what's happening up there before we go any further."

No one moved, they stood like silent sentinels; leaning against the rocks as they strained their ears and listened to the angry conversation taking place on the ledge above them.

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Juan scurried over the crest and smiled wolfishly when he spied Don's tracks. The agent was in a hurry and was making no attempt to hide his passage, making his job that much easier. He gazed down the hillside hoping to spot the man but nothing moved.

"Mierda! " He cursed, wandering how much time he had wasted with the man's brother.

Forgetting that he had been determined to get the agent before he crossed the ridge, he raced recklessly down the mountainside, not caring how much noise he was making and with only one thought on his mind,….to kill the agent before he could get to Hesperia.

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Rico watched his cousin leave and then his face contorted with rage as he turned back to Charlie. He hauled him up to a sitting position and fell to his knees, lashing out brutally; punching the mathematician with clenched fists and finally standing to kick him in the ribs once again when he collapsed to the ground.

"Where's the girl?" Rico hissed vehemently and shook him violently.

Charlie groaned, unable to answer him. Suddenly his mind exploded in a bright white light as the Mexican's foot connected with his broken ribs; the force of the impact pushing the remaining breath from his lungs. His breathing was becoming labored and erratic from Rico's repeated blows and his head had started to spin at an alarming rate. With eyes clouded with pain, he tried to focus on his assailant, hoping to avoid any further assault but he didn't have any strength left to fight off any of the man's furious blows.

Charlie blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision as one of Larry's "black hole's" suddenly appeared in front of him, floating at the edge of his vision. Automatically, Einstein's Field Equations in his theory of general relativity played across his mind. A distant part of him knew that it wasn't real but as Rico kicked him again, it became a vestige of hope, a way to escape from the man, and so without offering any further resistance, he let the strong gravitational pull of the event horizon take him closer to the rim.

"Te voy a matar!"

The Mexican yelled and sneered as he pulled Don's gun from the waistband of his pants and pointed it at the young Professor.

Charlie let go then and the gunfire grew distant as he welcomed the darkness and let the black hole engulf him.

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The agents burst into the clearing just as Rico fired the gun.

"FBI." David called out. "Drop the gun Martinez!"

Instinctively, Rico turned and fired at the agents. His shot went wild but David's didn't and the Mexican dropped immediately to the ground, three shots center mass; Colby and Liz had also returned fire.

Colby rushed forward and kicked the gun from Rico's hand before kneeling down to check for a pulse.

"He's gone. " The agent said, as he turned his attention to his friend.

David and Liz knelt down beside of Charlie's unconscious form and desperately felt for a pulse.

"He's not breathing!" David cried and immediately began to perform CPR.

Liz hurriedly tilted Charlie's head and opened his mouth to breathe air into his lungs. After several long minutes Colby found a pulse and Charlie drew in a ragged breath.

"He's barely alive." Colby said somberly as he shrugged out of his vest. He quickly pulled off his tee shirt and folded it so he could press it against the bullet wound in Charlie's shoulder. "He needs help and he needs it fast."

Nikki fell to her knees beside of him and hurriedly shoved her phone back into her pocket. "A rescue team is on its way. It should be here in twenty minutes." she said and took over for Colby while he put his Kevlar vest back on.

David watched as Colby's shirt quickly became soaked in Charlie's blood. "Let's hope he can last that long."

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Don moved down the ridge as quickly as he could with Sammy on his back. He had to hurry; he had to get back in time to help Charlie.

"We're almost there Sammy. See those houses over there? " He asked breathlessly, as he continued to climb down the ridge. Don kept talking, as much for himself, as for her; talking helped keep him from imagining what was happening on the other side of the mountain.

"Uh,huh."

He could feel her nodding her head against his neck. "We'll be able to get help and call your mommy and daddy."

"I wanta go home." Sammy said excitedly.

"I know." He patted her hands again

Suddenly, with a renewed burst of energy, Don and the little girl made it to the bottom of the ridge. Just as his foot hit the "mesa" the sound of a gunshot echoed across the mountain. Don's head whipped around as four more shots resounded in quick succession.

Horrified, he staggered backwards, eyes locked on the top of the ridge.

"No….no…no." he whispered over and over again as his legs suddenly went out from under him. It struck him like a physical blow, as if the bullet had pierced his own heart. White-faced he sank to the ground; a sob rising up in his throat.

The Mexicans had killed Charlie….they had killed his little brother and the realization was too much for him to bear.

"Charlie! Oh God.…Charlie. " He whispered brokenly as the tears ran freely down his cheeks.

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Juan was over half way down the mountainside when the shots resounded over the ridge and he paused, glancing upward.

"It took you long enough! " He muttered furiously as he turned back around and continued down the slope. He was becoming anxious because he was almost at the bottom of the ridge and he had yet to make any visual contact with the agent. He couldn't be too late…he just wouldn't accept that.

The Mexican moved faster, puffs of sand shooting into the air as he rushed down the trail. Suddenly he caught movement at the bottom of the hill and ducked behind a cluster of sagebrush. His lips spread in a malicious smile as he pulled his rifle from his shoulders and took aim.

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Don came to his senses a few moments later when he felt Sammy's small hand pat his wet cheeks softly.

"Sowwy." She said in a barely audible voice and started to cry herself.

"It's not your fault sweetie." The agent whispered hoarsely and took a deep shuddering breath as he struggled to his feet. He quickly wiped at his eyes and got a good grip on the little girl's legs.

"Hold on real tight Sammy,"

"Okay." She said and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Don didn't look back but stubbornly set his jaw and started off at a run. He was determined to get the little girl to safety. Charlie had given his life to save her and he wasn't going to let his sacrifice be in vain. The agent was halfway across the mesa when he heard the shout echo from the ridge behind him. The sound gave him an adrenaline rush and he kept moving, eyes straight ahead, trying to control his rising panic as he desperately searched for a hiding place for Samantha. But there was nothing, no rocks or large trees or anything that they could hide behind. The mesa was barren except for a few small Joshua trees and yucca plants.

Don took a chance and glanced back in time to see a figure rapidly climbing down the mountain. Desperately, he tried to run faster and almost stumbled for his efforts but he was able to steady himself and keep running.

Suddenly a report of a gun sounded from the bottom of the ridge and a sharp pain lanced through his leg. He dropped to one knee and quickly pulled the child from his back while he did a quick check of the wound. It was just a graze but it sure stung like hell. There was no time to bind it though, he had to keep moving.

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A distant shot echoed over the mountain range and six heads swiveled toward the ridge.

"Don." Liz said softly, her eyes lingering on the top of the mountain.

"And Samantha." Nikki added.

" Liz." David said quietly and reluctantly motioned for her to take over. "Keep him alive." He whispered as he stood up.

"You two head over the ridge and try to get behind Chavez" he ordered the S.W.A.T team members. "Colby and I will head back and take the chopper over to the other side. That way we'll have them between us."

With a nod the two men headed up the trail.

"You two stay with Charlie and keep an eye on that ridge line, just in case." David ordered as he headed back down the trail with Colby following close behind him. The agent spoke into his mike as he practically slid down the mountainside.

"Donaldson…come in. Over."

"Donaldson here."

"Colby and I…. are on …our way back." he said breathlessly. "Power the…chopper up, we're ….taking off as …soon as we… get there. Over."

"Roger that."

He clicked off the radio and hit the bottom of the ridge at a run.

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Don stumbled and struggled to his feet just as a bullet hit the ground near his foot and he quickly gathered the little girl in his arms and started running again. He warned her not to look over his shoulder and to hold on to his shirt. She wrapped her small arms around his chest and clutched his shirt with both hands while Don held her tightly in his arms. This made it difficult for him to run, but he couldn't take the chance that she might get hit with a bullet if he left her on his back

Another shot was fired and he saw the dust spew up in the sand on the right side of him. The Mexican was gaining distance on him; the next shot would probably be within range to strike him.

He spied a larger tree between the edge of the mesa and the highway and veered toward it hoping that it would give them a little protection from the gunman. If he was lucky he might be able to find something that he could use against the Mexican.

Don was within twenty feet of the tree when he felt the impact of the bullet as it pushed its way through his right shoulder; barely missing Samantha's hand on its way out. He cried out suddenly, swaying on his feet and then fell to his knees, collapsing onto his side with the little girl still holding on to his shirt.

White-hot pain seemed to radiate from the wound and blackness was threatening to consume him but his concern for the little girl forced him to hold on to consciousness.

"Sam…..run." Don gasped, as every breath he took brought excruciating pain along with it. "Go….hide….behind….tree." He tried to push her away but he was too weak.

Splattered with his blood Samantha refused to leave, crying and clinging obsessively to him; terrified of letting him go.

"Uncle Donnie….Donnie." The little girl cried, crawling between his arm and side.

Don cradled her weakly with his good arm as a tear ran down his cheek. He had failed her and Charlie too. He could hear the thud of the Mexican's feet pounding against the desert floor as he ran toward them. The gunman was getting closer and Don knew in his heart that the man would not spare the child.

A cold voice sent a chill through him and he hugged the little girl even tighter.

"You gave us quite a run, FBI." A winded but mocking voice spoke over his head.

Don felt a shadow pass over him and he opened his eyes to meet the cold eyes of the Mexican.

Chavez looped his rifle around his shoulders and pulled the handgun from the waistband of his jeans before sitting down next to him. Still breathing hard from his run, he opened his canteen and poured water over his face before taking a long swallow. Noticing the longing look in the eyes of the agent and the child he let loose a snort of laughter as he tightened the lid on the canteen.

"I would give you some man, but since you will be dead in a few minutes it would just be a waste and I still have to go back across the mountain."

"Please." The agent whispered. "Don't ….hurt her." Don knew it was useless to plead with the man but he still had to try for Sammy's sake. "She's just…a….baby. Let…her…go."

"You don't look so good man. " Juan said, ignoring Don's plea. "I said those same words to your brother a little while ago. "

"Charlie? " Don's heart dropped as his pain filled eyes met those of the Mexicans. "He's….my brother is …?" The agent couldn't bring himself to say the words.

Delighting in the man's distress, Chavez decided to have some more fun at the agent's expense. He leaned over and nudged Don's head with the barrel of his gun. "Si…he is dead." The look of devastation in the man's eyes spurred him on.

"There is something that puzzles me about him. You see, we would have passed him by without even knowing he was there, but then he made a noise that got our attention."

He grinned as realization dawned in Don's eyes; Charlie had sacrificed his life to give them more time.

"It is my belief he did this to distract us and give you more time to get away. It almost worked too. " He added with a grin and decided to torment the man a little longer. "You are the one that killed him….you left him behind to die and despite your betrayal he gave his life to help you."

Don's soul had hit rock bottom, he didn't even try to deny what the man was saying…it was true…it was his fault that Charlie was dead. He had failed him and he had failed Sammy; it was only right that he should die too.

Chavez rose to his feet and stared coldly at the agent "Te voy a matar." He said as he checked the ammo in his gun. "Empieza rezar" As an afterthought he added. "In case you do not understand Spanish I will translate it for you. I am going to kill you and you should start praying now."

The Mexican's eyes dropped to the child clinging to the agent and he shrugged his shoulders. "Too bad about the little girl man but I can't leave any witnesses. You did accomplish one thing Agent Eppes." He waited until Don met his eyes. "Her death will be a quick one…Rico will not have her. That, at least, should make you happy."

Juan pointed the gun at the agent. "Any last words FBI man?"

Don's eyelids fluttered closed and his arm tightened around Samantha, at least it would be fast he thought sadly.

"Close your eyes Sammy…close them tight sweetie." he whispered tenderly.

Without looking up, she nodded her small head and in a barely audible whisper answered. "Okay."

"Muerete!" The Mexican said as his finger tightened on the trigger.

A large shadow seemed to pass over Don blocking out the bright sun and along with it, a loud roaring sound that filled his ears just before everything went dark.

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Almost breathless, David and Colby jumped into the helicopter as the pilot lifted off of the ground. It rose swiftly and by the time the door was completely shut they were passing over the ridge where they had left Charlie, Liz and Nikki.

Frantically David and Colby scanned the mountain range for any sign of Don or Chavez. They spotted Johnson and Richardson quickly, already half way down the mountainside.

"Johnson this is Granger. Come in. Over."

A breathless voice responded. "Johnson here. Go ahead."

"Any signs of Agent Eppes or Chavez? Over."

"Plenty of tracks to follow. Both are in a hurry. Over"

"We heard one gunshot. Any idea where it came from? Over."

"Make that three. We think they're already down. Check the desert floor first. We'll meet you there. Over."

"Roger that. Out."

The pilot heard the conversation as well and with a nod from David, quickly brought the chopper to the bottom of the hillside.

"Maybe Don made it to the road." Colby muttered hopefully, letting his glasses drift across the desert floor.

"Maybe." His partner agreed but just as quickly added. "And maybe not." He turned to the pilot.

"Hurry! Take us lower and move closer to the road."

With a nod of his head, the pilot soon had them hovering over the life and death struggle taking place at the edge of "the mesa."

Colby slid the door open and carefully aimed his gun at Chavez.

"This is the FBI!" David shouted, his own gun pointed at the man. "Drop your weapons and put your hands in the air!"

Juan looked up in surprise, he had been so focused on killing Don that he never heard the helicopter until it was too late. He was no fool though and knew when he was outnumbered, he dropped the handgun just as the helicopter landed and tossed his rifle to the ground.

"Down on your knees Chavez!" Colby yelled as the agents advanced on the Mexican.

Chavez hesitated, as if he was thinking about running but gave up on the idea when he met the stony gaze of the lead agent.

"Give me a reason." David growled.

The Mexican shrugged and dropped to his knees. It wasn't worth dying for he decided; after all he hadn't killed anyone, well, at least, no one that he could be connected too. The most they could get him for was attempted murder and kidnapping. Rico, on the other hand, had murdered the other kids; it would be the death penalty for him. He almost smiled while Colby jerked his arms behind his back and handcuffed him.

Richardson and Johnson caught up to them and the agent turned the prisoner over to them. "Here, read this scumbag his rights."

He ran to the helicopter and grabbed the first aid kit before kneeling down next to Don's unconscious form.

David had two fingers to his friend's neck and looked up grimly when Colby joined him.

"He barely has a pulse."

"Just like Charlie." Colby muttered as he ripped open a package containing bandages and quickly covered the bullet wound. "Donaldson called for an ambulance." he added in a clipped voice.

David sat back on his heels and looked Don over. "His right leg is bleeding too. Looks like he's been through hell, come to think of it, Charlie did too."

His eyes widened as they fell upon a small trembling hand clutching Don's shirt. The frightened little girl had somehow managed to squeeze into the space between Don's arm and his side until she was almost completely hidden from view.

"Colby look." he said quietly, trying not to startle the child.

Colby's mouth dropped open in surprise. "I didn't even see her there."

"Me neither."

David's first instinct was to pick her up but from the way that she was shaking he was afraid it would frighten her even more. Carefully, he lifted his friend's arm and placed it gently on the ground revealing the little girl huddled against Don's side.

"Samantha?" he asked softly.

No response. He shared a concerned look with Colby and tried again.

"Samantha? My name is David and I want to help you. I'm not going to hurt you."

The little girl twisted around and turned her face upwards without releasing her hold on Don's shirt.

David caught his breath and his heart melted at the sight of the small tear-stained face, covered with sand and splattered blood. Frightened blue eyes stared up at him through dirty matted blondehair and he found himself almost speechless. He couldn't imagine what she had been through but he completely understood his friend's desperateattempt to save her.

The ambulance had arrived and the medical technicians were forcing David and Colby to move away from Don.

Gently David picked her up but was unprepared for her reaction when she was taken from Don's side. The little girl became hysterial, screaming "Uncle Donnie" over and over again. She kicked him and hit his chest repeatedly with her small fists; keeping her eyes on Don the whole time. David held her close until she exhausted herself and finally collapsed in his arms.

"Want Uncle Chawlie and Uncle Donnie." She sobbed, wiping at the tears in her eyes.

"I know you do but both of them are sick and have to go to the hospital." David said in a soothing voice as he rubbed her back gently. "Why don't we take you home to your Mommy and Daddy for now and maybe they will let you visit Uncle Donnie and Uncle Charlie when they get better."

Colby hovered at his side "Is she okay?"

"She's pretty scared but I don't think she is injured. We'll need to get her checked out at the hospital before we take her back to LA."

They were interrupted as a medicalhelicopter passed over them heading for the nearest hospital.

"Liz checked in. She's going to the hospital with Charlie and will contact Alan. Nikki will stay on the mountain until the crime scene is cleared. "

"Good." David responded as he started walking toward the ambulance. The paramedics had Don stabilized and on a stretcher. "I want them to take a look at Samantha and then I'll ride with her and Don to the hospital."

"I'll clean up here and contact her parents." Colby left to take charge of the scene, pausing briefly to add. "Call me as soon as you know something."

David nodded and hurried over to join the paramedics. "Is he going to be okay?"

"He's stable for now. I'm afraid that's all I can tell you." The medic replied as they loaded Don into the ambulance.

"I have someone else for you to check over and then we'll be riding with you."

Samantha clung silently to him as the paramedic checked her over. She had grown calmer now that she was once again near Don and as they sat alongside of him in the ambulance she somehow managed to grab his hand and held it all the way to the hospital.

TBC

Translations:

Te voy a matar = I'm going to kill you,

Muerete! = die

Matenio! = kill him

Empieza rezar = start praying

Ya basta = that's enough

Pegale = hit him

Cierra la boca!!! = shut up

Vete al inferno = go to hell!

Gabacho/a = insulting term for a white person

Te voy a romper en pedazos = I'll break you to pieces!

Mired! = shit!

Primo = cousin

si te mueres = you die


	25. Chapter 25

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1:

A/N: I truly appreciate your reviews.

Chapter 25:

"_I've been waiting for you….just like I promised." The soft deep voice intoned. _"_Are you ready now?"_

_Don's eyes fluttered open but he closed them immediately against the bright, white light that encompassed him; turning his head in the direction of the voice he opened them again, squinting up at the shadowy form standing over him. _

_The voice was familiar, one that he was desperate to hear again but knew he could not; it was a voice that had been forever silenced because of his actions. A wave of grief washed over him as the bits and pieces of his memory began to coalesce. _

_Don didn't want to think about what he had done so he focused on other questions. Where was he? Why was he laying on the ground? Another thought occurred to him as the memory of being shot resurfaced; why wasn't he feeling any pain? _

_His eyes were adjusting to the light now and he noticed that it wasn't just a light but more like a white mist that surrounded him; it even felt like it was a part of him somehow and he turned his head to find out where he was when the speaker came into view._

_Don's eyes widened in astonishment, momentarily speechless as his gaze drifted over the figure in front of him. Disbelief turned to puzzlement and then to extreme joy as he leaned back on his elbows and met the expressive brown eyes of his brother. _

"_Charlie?" He asked in surprise. "Is that really you?" _

_His brother's eyebrows knitted together in puzzlement. "Who else would I be?" Charlie patiently answered. "I've been waiting for you. Here." He said extending his hand. "Let me help you up." _

_Don's heart soared when he felt the warm, firm grip of his brother's hand and as soon as he was on his feet immediately embraced him in a fierce hug. He pulled back a few moments later but kept his hands firmly planted on Charlie's shoulders; too afraid that he would disappear if he let him go. _

"_You're okay?" he asked, searching his brother's face for signs of pain; finding none he checked him over carefully and looked up in surprise. "Your leg isn't broken anymore….and…and…your other leg is okay too. And where did you find a change of clothes?" he added, noting the clean pair of jeans and tee shirt that his brother was wearing. _

_Charlie shrugged. "I feel fine and as for the clothes, I was wearing them when I woke up…just like you."_

_Don glanced at his own attire and his eyebrows lifted in surprise. "I don't get it…how is this possible?" He felt his own shoulder and glanced at his leg, then shared an amazed look with his brother. "I was shot…twice…but…..wasn't I?'" he asked in confusion, shaking his head as if to clear it and then another thought occurred to him._

"_What happened to Sammy?" He asked, turning his head to look around for her. "Where did she go?"_

_Charlie smiled at him then, the smile that said so much to Don; the smile that told him that he was really proud of him and that he was still his hero; the little brother smile and the warm glow in his eyes that was only reserved for Don. The smile that Don had always cherished, even though he had never told Charlie how much it meant to him._

"_You saved her Don; she's safe now." He replied. "David and Colby found you in time to save her and now she's back home with her family."_

_Don stared deeply into his brother's eyes. "But not in time for you." he sad sadly and then a knowing look came into his eyes. "Or for me either."_

_Charlie's forehead creased in thought. "I don't think so but I'm not really sure. " he glanced at the white mist that surrounded them. "I haven't done any research in the area of "near death experiences" although I was going to add it to my Cognitive Emergence work. Besides," he added with a frown. "You should have the answer to that question; after all, you're the one that almost died a few months ago. Was it like this?"_

"_That's just it Charlie." Don said with a shrug. "The only thing I remember from when I was stabbed was waking up and finding Dad sitting beside the bed." _

_Suddenly, he smiled broadly, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "But if I died then I'm okay with that as long as we're together. " his smile was replaced with a frown and his dark eyes clouded over with pain and guilt. "I'll never leave you again buddy…I promise."_

"_You didn't leave me Don. I asked you to take Sammy home….remember?" Charlie said glancing sideways at him. "Please…I don't want you to feel guilty about what happened." He cleared his throat and looked away. "So, what are we supposed to do now?" _

"_Damned if I know. " Don replied. "Any suggestions?"_

"_I don't know. You want to go for a walk?"_

_An incredulous look crossed Don's features. "What? Two days walking the Mojave isn't enough for you?"_

_Charlie shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged again. "What do you want to do?"_

"_I think we should try to find Dad. " _

"_How?" The younger man asked spreading his arms wide and turning in a circle. "This white mist is everywhere. There isn't anything here that would help us determine our location or even to figure out which direction we should go in."_

"_I have a feeling that if we just start walking we'll find him." Don said confidently._

_Charlie tilted his head and crossed his arms. "What imperial evidence are you basing that on?"_

"_Come on Chuck, just go with me on this one." his brother chuckled. "Call it a hunch."_

_Charlie opened is mouth to argue the point but found himself at a loss for words and a grin spread across his face. "Okay." He said simply with a wave of his hand. "Lead on." _

_Don grinned and hooked an arm around his brother's neck as they set off to search for Alan. _

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Disbelief spread across Colby's face as he listened to Juan Chavez. The Mexican had been brought in to give his official statement and the agent was having difficulty believing anything that the man had told them. Dressed in an orange jumpsuit with the words "High Desert Prison" stenciled on the back he had arrived with his lawyer in an effort to cut a deal with the agents. The Mexican was seated at the end of the table and handcuffed to an iron bar fastened to the table top.

Colby shared an incredulous look with Liz as Chavez tried to present himself as a victim in the case.

"Let me get this straight." he said sitting back in his chair. "You're saying that Martinez forced you to help him pursue Agent Eppes, Professor Eppes and Samantha Wilkins across the desert."

With a look of complete innocence on his face the Mexican answered. "Si….ah…yes. That is correct."

"Did you help him kidnap the girls too?"

"No…no!" Wide-eyed and fearful the man quickly responded. "He did that on his own…I didn't even know it was him until he ordered me to help find those two guys and the kid."

Liz leaned forward. "Just how do you explain the fact that the bullet that hit Agent Eppes was shot from the rifle that you were carrying when you were arrested?" The agent leaned back and crossed her arms. "Oh and lets not forget that we arrived just in time to prevent you from shooting him again. "

Juan swallowed hard. "I just wounded him so Rico would think that I killed him and I was just going to pretend to shoot him again…to convince Rico…you know?"

"Cut the crap and tell us the truth Chavez?"

Juan feigned a look of hurt and anguish. "But I am, Agent Granger. Rico had a terrible temper…everyone knew it and lots of people were afraid of him."

"Really?" Colby asked as he opened a manila folder. "Do you know Julio Ramirez?"

There was a brief flicker of recognition in Juan's eyes but he quickly masked his features as he recalled beating the man senseless for stepping on a new pair of shoes that he was wearing at the time. The old drunk had been a friend of Rico's and apparently a loose end he should have taken care of before chasing after the Eppes brothers.

The Mexican shrugged his shoulders. "The name sounds familiar; I believe he was a friend of Rico's."

Colby nodded thoughtfully and tapped the folder on the table. "According to Ramirez you are the one with the bad temper and he also said that Martinez was afraid of you too."

Juan poured on the charm and smiled disarmingly. "Why would anyone be afraid of me? Julio is a drunken old man, perhaps he has me confused with someone else."

"Which one of you beat up Professor Eppes?" Liz asked, trying to catch him off guard.

"After we found him, Rico ordered me to look for the agent and the little girl. He stayed with the Professor and I did not see either of them again." His eyed her thoughtfully and then asked. "I'm sure Professor Eppes has already told you what happened to him…..unless for some reason he is unable to tell you? " He looked from agent to agent hoping for a response.

"We want to hear your side of the story. " Liz responded with a stony gaze.

"You were pointing a gun at Agent Eppes when we arrived. " Colby stated, drawing the Mexican's attention back to him. "And you were also talking to him. What did you say? "

The Mexican leaned forward so that he could scratch his goatee before answering the agent. "I told him that I would try and get some help for him and the little girl. " He met the agent's eye, carefully masking his own emotions. "I would never hurt anyone but surely Agent Eppes has already told you this."

Colby nodded at Liz and together they headed for the door. "Sit tight Chavez. " Colby said sarcastically over his shoulder. "We'll be back soon. "

As soon as they left the Mexican's attorney moved closer so they could talk without anyone overhearing their conversation.

David and Nikki were monitoring the interrogation from another room and looked up when the agents joined them.

"Are you buying any of that crap?" Colby asked nodding at the two men on the video monitor.

"That son of a bitch is lying through his teeth." Liz muttered angrily.

"Of course he is." David agreed. "But with Martinez dead and without Don and Charlie's testimony the man actually has a chance at getting a lighter sentence."

"I don't suppose there is any chance that the little girl would be able to recognize him?" Nikki asked hopefully.

David shook is head. "No chance. Samantha was badly traumatized by the abduction and her parents are seeking help from a child therapist. As a matter of fact, Mr. Wilkins called this morning to see if we had any specifics that might help the doctor treat her." He ran his hand over his face. "You should have seen her screaming for "Uncle Donnie" and "Uncle Charlie" when we took her away from Don." He sat down on the edge of the table and shared a look with Colby. "That's going to stay with me for a long time."

"Yeah, me too." Colby agreed and then asked. "What else did Wilkins have to say?"

"Well, I told him about her reaction and apparently that was the last time that she said anything at all…..she hasn't spoken a single word since then. "

"That poor little girl." Nikki murmured.

Liz glanced at her teammates. "Has anyone heard from Alan today?"

David rubbed his forehead before answering. "No." he sighed heavily. "But Robin stopped by a half an hour ago."

Three pairs of eyes anxiously met his but he shook his head sadly and said softly.

"Nothings changed. "

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_The white mist surrounded them like a cocoon; it was all en-compassing, not only around them but within them as well. Time had no meaning within the mist and it was as if the pressures and constraints of life had been stripped from their shoulders. _

_They walked side by side, sometimes in companionable silence and other times recalling the joyous events that they had shared in life. There was no sound other than their own conversation; pain, hunger, thirst and fatigue had all disappeared; cast out of the idyllic mist like a tattered worn out coat. _

_A rapturous feeling washed over them and for the first time in a very long time, Don felt at peace. He drank in the feeling like it was a cool glass of water, quenching his weary soul like water quenched his thirst and he relished every moment of it. He glanced at his brother and could tell from the expression on his face that he was experiencing the same sensations. _

_He stopped suddenly and grabbed Charlie's arm. "Listen." he said, tilting his head to the side. "Do you hear that?"_

_Charlie shook his head and listened intently. "Hear what?"_

_Don peered through the white mist. "It's really faint but it sounded like a beep of some kind, like something mechanical…and there were voices too. " _

_The young professor strained to hear the noises but in the end just shook his head again. "Don I don't hear anything."_

_The agent shrugged. "I must have imagined it."_

_They started forward again but a few minutes' later Don slowed to a stop. "There it is again." he said excitedly. "Its louder this time…..you heard it that time, right?" He took a step toward the noise and glanced over his shoulder but his brother wasn't moving, just standing in the same spot._

"_Charlie, let's check this out." He said over his shoulder as he stepped closer to the sound. _

_Charlie started to follow but came up short when he met with an invisible barrier. "Don wait! " he desperately shouted, stretching his hand out to feel the obstacle. "I can't follow you!" _

_Don had turned back at his brother's call and although an unseen force was pulling him toward the strange sound he pushed against it to retrace his steps. _

_Fear laced Charlie's gaze as he met Don's eyes. "I can't come with you." he whispered sadly._

_Panic spurred Don's feet as he hurried through the barrier to join his brother. "I don't understand….why can I go through it, but not you?"_

_Charlie brought his hand up against the invisible barrier and glanced sideways at Don. "I have a theory." he said quietly. "Maybe you aren't really dead ….and it's time for you to return home …but ….but…I am and that's why I can't go through."_

"_What are you saying Charlie?" Don demanded, eyes flashing angrily. "That you died but I didn't and now I have to go back and leave you again."_

"_Think about Don." Charlie pleaded with him. "What else could it mean?"_

"_No!" Don shouted in denial. "That is not going to happen!"_

"_But what about ….." _

_Charlie tried to reason with him but stopped talking when his brother stepped closer and put his hands on his shoulders. Eye to eye, Don set his jaw and calmly but firmly made his decision._

"_I left you once and I will not do that again. We go back together or we don't go back at all."_

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Alan stood halfway between the two hospital beds and glanced from son to son. He would leave his chair periodically to check on them and to convince himself that they were both really alive and breathing.

Twin beeps from dual heart monitors and other medical equipment filled the room with noise reminding him of that very fact but he needed to touch them and feel their heartbeats before his own heart would slow to its normal pace.

Alan sighed audibly; he needed them to wake up, he desperately needed his sons to open their eyes for him. It had been five days since they had been rescued and during that time neither one of them had regained consciousness. Charlie had been put into a medically induced coma because of a severe concussion but Don's doctor was still searching for the reason that he was in a coma.

He glanced at the newspaper that was on the chair behind him; the media had hailed them as heroes. Don and Charlie had somehow managed to rescue the little girl from her kidnappers and now she was home, safe and sound, with her family.

Pictures of Charlie, Don and the little girl were on the front page of the LA Times and every newspaper in town. In bold letters the headlines read the same. "Eppes Brothers Save Kidnapped Girl in Daring Rescue" or "FBI Kills Serial Killer in Shoot out. " There were other variations too but those seemed to be the most popular. It was quite a story and played out like an action movie. Alan knew it by heart but the one thing that was missing was Don and Charlie's account of what really occurred out there; until then the FBI could only speculate. Their story was being told on all of the national and local newscasts as well and a few of the trendy talk show hosts had already tried to contact them.

Photos of the two Mexican gunmen were also shown in the paper but the FBI was still working on the case so little information was known about either of the two men. One of the men had been identified as the man responsible for the brutal rape and slayings of the three little girls and also for the kidnapping of Samantha Wilkins. To the relief of the parents around the Los Angeles area he had died in a shootout with the agents. Little was known about the second man and the extent of his involvement in the case other than the fact that he was reportedly a relative of the serial killer.

Alan's thoughts didn't linger on them; he was a fair man, always had been, but he felt that the man got what he deserved. It seemed to bring a sense of justice for the murdered children and if the second man had a part in it then he could stand trial and pay the ultimate penalty for his involvement. He didn't know what their story was but he felt no pity for them; they had tried to kill his sons and the little girl would have died a horrifying death had she fallen into Martinez's hands again.

"_Yes." He thought. "Justice had been served, he was glad that monster had been killed."_

A hospital attendant entered the room interrupting his dark thoughts.

"Mr. Eppes aren't these just beautiful." She said handing him a large basket of orchids and roses. "And look who they're from." The attendant added with a wink of her eye.

Alan opened the card and his eyebrow's rose up in surprise. "The Queen of England."

"Your sons are very popular." The young woman waived her hand. "We are running out of places to put them in here."

"Ah….maybe we could give some of them to people who don't have any in their rooms. I know that's what the boys would want me to do."

"Why, that's very kind of you Mr. Eppes. Why don't you sort through them and set the ones that you want to give away outside of the door and I'll distribute them to the other patients. It will certainly brighten their day." She glanced at the brothers and sighed. "I hope they wake up soon." She patted him on the arm on her way out of the door.

Alan looked at the basket and then glanced around the room. It was filled to capacity with flowers, balloons and cards from family, friends and a multitude of unknown well wishers. It seemed that all of LA was intent on honoring Don and Charlie for their heroic feat. He blinked at the card in the flower arrangement and amended that last thought. "Not just LA."

His eyes fell on a basket of roses that had been delivered earlier in the morning. It seemed that the Governor was also following the story. "I think we'll keep this one too..…the boys will have to see it to believe it."

He found an empty corner and put the flowers down and shuffled back to his spot between the beds. Yes, they were heroes and Alan couldn't be more proud of them but it had almost cost them their lives. The doctor's had said that their prognosis was good but if the FBI hadn't found them in time he would have lost them both, and from what David had told him, time had just about run out.

Trying to put that dark thought out of his mind, he moved forward and fussed with Don's blanket, careful not to touch the bandages on his chest and his leg. Alan's eyes drifted over his son's body and he mentally clicked off his injuries. Two bullet wounds, one in the left shoulder and a graze on his left leg. A mild concussion, dehydration, which accounted for the fluids that were being pumped intravenously into his body and of course, his face and arms had sustained a nasty sunburn; courtesy of the Mojave Desert.

"Come back to me son. " Alan whispered and squeezed his hand before turning to the second bed.

Charlie's dark curls and sunburn were in stark contrast to the white bandage that was wrapped around his head. That injury was the reason he was still unconscious. His doctor had deemed it necessary to put him in a dug-induced coma to help reduce the swelling of his brain from a severe concussion.

Moisture formed in the corners of his eyes as he noted the rest of the bandages now decorating his youngest son. One over a bullet wound in his right shoulder and dark bruises surrounded the strips of cloth that were wrapped around his chest, protecting his two broken ribs. His lower left leg was covered with a cast, protecting a broken tibia and another bandage encircled his upper right thigh covering a long gash that had required a number of stitches. Dehydration and sunburn ended his extensive list of injuries, prompting Alan to sigh heavily as he adjusted the blanket covering his youngest.

The respirator was disconcerting, but his doctor planned to remove it later in the day. The previous evening he had started to wean Charlie from the pentobarbital that he was using to keep him asleep and was sure that once it was completely out of his system they should see a change in his condition.

Alan placed his hand lightly on his son's chest, over his heart, and sighed with relief when he could feel it beating beneath his fingers.

The door to the room opened and he looked up as he swept a curl from his son's forehead. A nurse and attendant entered and approached Charlie's bed.

Alan's hand drifted to his son's hand and he gave it a gentle squeeze, leaning over he whispered in Charlie's ear. "Hurry back to me son."

"It's time for us to take Charlie for his EEG Mr. Epps." The nurse said quietly.

Alan simply nodded and stepped away from the bed and watched as they disconnected the monitors and in only a few seconds they were rolling the bed through the doorway.

The nurse glanced back at Alan . "He'll be back in about an hour or so." She said over her shoulder as she followed the orderly out of the room.

Alan pulled his chair closer to Don's bedside and let his hand lightly rest on Don's chest so that he could feel the beating of his heart. Satisfied he wearily sank into the chair and gently took his son's hand. The room seemed ominously silent now, with only one heart monitor breaking up the silence.

The door opened again and Don's doctor and a nurse entered the room. Alan rose from the chair and watched as they performed a cursory examination of his son. The Doctor made notations on Don's chart and spoke softly to the nurse; moments later she quietly left the room.

Dr. Martinson, a man in his early fifties, studied the elderly man on the other side of the bed. He had become quite familiar with the gentlemen in the last few days and could only imagine the strain the man had been under as he stepped around the bed to talk with him.

"Have you discovered something?" Alan asked anxiously.

The doctor removed his glasses and stuck them in the pocket of his white coat. "Nothing. There is no physical reason for him to be unconscious." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Let me ask you a question Mr. Eppes. Do you know if Don suffered a traumatic event before his injury?"

Alan's eyebrows rose sharply in surprise. Traumatic event, didn't the guy read the papers?

Martinson read his expression and quickly explained the reason for his question. "I know that what he recently experienced was certainly traumatic but I want to know if you are aware of another traumatic event that he might have experienced and would have to deal with again if he were to wake up."

Noting Alan's confusion he went on to explain. "There have been many documented cases where a person was comatose and a medical condition could not be found to explain it. When the patients recovered it was discovered that all of them had shared a recent traumatic event and couldn't bear to face it again." He paused to gauge the elder man's reaction. "I believe that Don will wake up when he's ready and not a minute before."

Alan cleared his throat. "Hmm….how long were these people in a coma?"

"The cases varied in length, some as short as three days, others went on for years."

"Years." Alan whispered dismayed, letting his eyes drift to his sons face.

"That doesn't mean that Don will be under that long." The doctor was quick to add. "Each patient is different, it could be a shorter period of time…or a longer one…there is really no way to be certain."

Alan glanced up, a hopeful light in his eyes. "I'm hoping for shorter."

Martinson nodded. "I've compared Don's scans with several of those cases and they are very similar. As a matter of fact your son has come close to wakening several times but always seems to pull back before he gains consciousness. I'm ordering another EEG today and I'm hopeful that I will see an improvement." He turned to leave but paused at the door. "Are your sons very close?"

Alan's brow furrowed. "Close? Why, yes they are. Why do you ask?"

"A few years ago there was a case involving a set of twins that had been injured in separate car accidents. As a result they were both comatose for several weeks in different hospitals and in different states. When the doctors reports were reviewed it turned out that both of the girls had awakened at the exact same time and when interviewed related the same experiences. Both of them had reported that they were together the entire time." He shrugged and put his hand on the door. "There is still a lot that we don't know about the brain Mr. Eppes. My point is this: don't give up."

Alan brought his chin up, unshed tears glistening in his eyes. "Not a chance."

"Good." The doctor responded and left the room.

Alan tenderly gripped his son's hand. "Why won't you wake up son?" he whispered brokenly. "What could have happened that is so terrible that you don't want to face?" He stood up suddenly and superciliously wiped at a tear as the door opened and a nurse and orderly entered the room.

"Mr. Eppes, your son has been scheduled for another EEG." The nurse announced as she began to unhook the monitors. "It's almost lunchtime." She said with a smile. "Now would be a good time for you to grab a bite. Don will be back in about an hour."

The door closed behind them and Alan glanced around the now silent room. He took a deep breath and decided to take the nurse's advice.

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The elevator chimed and the door opened on the 4th floor of the busy hospital. Among the people disembarking was a young woman and at first glance she appeared to be alone but as she looked around the busy hallway the child that had been walking slightly behind her drifted forward to stand at her side. The woman knelt down and spoke softly to the little girl; kissed her lovingly on the cheek and rose with her in her arms then she carefully stepped around carts bearing meals for the patients on the floor and orderlies wheeling patients to other parts of the hospital to make her way to the nurse's station.

"Excuse me." She said politely and waited for the nurse to look up.

"I'll be with you in just a moment." The nurse replied without looking up. A few moments later she closed the folder that she had been writing in and met the young woman's gaze. "How can I help you?"

"I'm looking for Don and Charlie Eppes. " She answered hesitantly. "I was told they were on this floor."

"Are you immediate family?"

"Well…no…not exactly." The woman replied; her arms tightening around the child in her arms. The little girl wrapped her arms around her mother's neck and stared somberly at the woman behind the desk.

"I'm sorry. Unless you are family or on the approved visitors list I cannot let you go in."

Disappointment crossed the woman's features "Oh…of course….I understand." She bent her head and kissed the top of the little girls head. "I'm sorry Samantha but we can't see Uncle Donnie or Uncle Charlie today." She turned to leave but the nurse had overheard the child's name and called out.

"Wait." She stood up and walked around the desk to stand beside of them.

"This is the little girl they rescued?" She asked, stretching her hand out to pat the her arm. "This is Samantha?"

"Yes it is."

"How is she doing?" The nurse asked compassionately. "That was an awful ordeal for such a small child to endure."

"Yes, it was." Angela Wilkins agreed, hugging her daughter fiercely, as if she could make the whole experience disappear. "But I'm afraid that it's going to take a while for her to get over it." Her eyes lit up hopefully. "That's one reason we are here, you see the therapist thought it would be could for her to see them again."

The nurse shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry but I still can't let you in without proper authorization." The crestfallen look on the woman's face prompted her to add. "Do you know Alan Eppes?"

"I met him once." Angela whispered, remembering the candle light vigil at the university.

"He just left a few minutes ago to have lunch in the hospital cafeteria." She leaned forward and squeezed the young woman's arm when she saw a puzzled look cross her features. "Honey, don't you see? He can give you authorization to see his sons."

Angela smiled." Thank you. We'll go down now and look for him." She glanced at her child. "Samantha is probably hungry anyway. Are you hungry baby?"

But Samantha didn't respond, she just laid her head on her mother's breast and stared at the nurse.

"She doesn't talk anymore." Angela said, her voice cracking. "She will eat if I give her something and do what I tell her to do but she hasn't said a word since we got her back."

"Oh, you poor dear little girl." The nurse said sympathetically; patting her back gently.

Angela cleared her throat. "Thank you for your help. Hopefully, we'll see you in a little while with Mr. Eppes."

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Alan alternately picked at his salad and checked his watch. Lost in thought he would take a bite of salad and then glance at his watch but as he dismally discovered it didn't make the time go any faster.

"Excuse me…Mr. Eppes? May we join you?"

Alan brought his head up; his eyes hardening. When would those damn reporters stop hounding him, well, no more, he was tired of it and he had just opened his mouth to tell the woman that he wanted to be left alone when he realized that she had said we and yet she was the only one standing on the other side of his table.

"We?" He asked, peering over his glasses.

"We." The young woman repeated, letting her eyes drift down to her side.

Alan followed her gaze and met a pair of small blue eyes surrounded by a head full of blonde curls peaking out from behind her mother's leg. Tearing his eyes away from the child he took a closer look at the young woman's face and rose from his chair as a look of recognition and surprise crossed his face.

"It's you." He whispered and then recovered himself. "Forgive me; I thought you were one of those annoying reporters. Please….please sit down……both of you."

"Thank you." She said and set her tray down on the table and slid her tote bag to the floor but she didn't sit down, instead she took her daughters hand, stepping around the table until she was standing in front of Alan. She knelt down beside the little girl and introduced her to the older man.

"Samantha this is Mr. Eppes. "

"It's a pleasure to meet you Samantha." Alan replied, bending over to offer her his hand but he was dismayed by her reaction when she immediately turned and wrapped her arms around her mother's neck, hiding her face from him.

"I'm sorry. She's afraid of people now, the therapist says that it will take a while before she begins to trust grown ups again." She forced the little girl to look around. "Samantha, Mr. Eppes is a nice man and he won't hurt you." She lifted her daughters chin, making sure that she made eye contact with her. "Mr Eppes is Uncle Donnie's and Uncle Charlie's daddy. "

The little girl looked up in awe at Alan when her mother mentioned the brothers and gazed intently at him; leaning forward to stare at his eyes. She recognized the same soft, brown eyes that she had come to love and trust and turned excitedly to her mother and exclaimed. "Uncle Chawlie and Uncle Donnie!"

Angela gasped and covered her mouth. Pulling herself together she smoothed the curls around her daughter's forehead before answering. "Yes, honey. He is their father." She rose to her feet, picking up the child as she stood and carried her around to an empty chair across from Alan.

"Now let's sit you down so you can eat your lunch." She set her on the chair and pushed it in closer to the table. Angela opened up a juice box for her and set her sandwich on a paper plate on the table in front of her. Samantha didn't say anything; she sat quietly in the chair, holding her juice box with both hands while she slowly drank her grape juice; her small blue eyes tracking Alan's movements as she slurped the juice through a straw.

Alan's jaw had dropped open in surprise when the little girl named his sons as her uncles.

"Uncle Charlie….and…and… Uncle Donnie." he finally stammered out, his voice thick with emotion.

The young woman looked away, wiping at her tears, but when she returned his gaze it was with a smile on her face. "Yes. Apparently they became her "uncles" while she was with them." She tilted her head thoughtfully. "Agent Sinclair told my husband about it yesterday. It seems that Samantha made quite a fuss when she was taken away from your son Don and kept screaming for Uncle Donnie and Uncle Charlie."

"Really?" Alan said thickly. "He didn't tell me about that." he cleared his throat and gazed at the little girl. She looked so small and fragile and he could only imagine how desperate his sons must have been to get her to safety. His lips lifted in a smile as he watched her.

"When Charlie was her age he had a head full of curls too, only his were dark brown." he snorted suddenly. "Come to think of it…he still does."

"These curls have quite a story all of their own." Angela said lovingly as she fluffed her daughter's hair. She turned back to face Alan; her smile fading slightly as she spoke.

"When we first got her back…she was a mess and I mean no disrespect to your sons." She added quickly. "I'm sure they did their best to take care of her." Slightly flustered, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "What I meant to say was that she was covered in sand and dirt, her long hair was dirty and so matted that I couldn't even get a brush through it. I bathed her and washed her hair but in the end I had to take her to a salon to have it cut." Her hand shook a little as she ran her fingers through her daughter's curls. "Anyway, while we were waiting she saw a picture of your son Charlie in a book that one of the hairdressers was reading." She tilted her head. "I think it was a book that he had written."

"The Attraction Equation." Alan said proudly. "That book was actually based on a paper that Charlie wrote when he was nine but he rewrote it to reach a larger audience and had it published as a book a couple of years ago…it became a bestseller. I'm sorry." He said, embarrassed that he had interrupted her. "Please continue."

"Its okay." she smiled. "I can see you're very proud of him."

"I'm proud of both of my sons." Alan responded quietly.

"Anyway." Angela continued. "When Samantha saw his picture she became all excited and started repeating "Uncle Charlie" over and over again and then she looked up at me and said "want cuwls like Uncle Chawle." She turned her head and wiped at her eyes. before facing him again. "I don't know how to explain the emotional impact of that moment…you see…that was the first time that she had said anything since her return to us." Tears streamed down her cheeks and she pulled a tissue from her pocket. "I'm sorry it just meant so much to hear her voice again. " Her lips quirked upward in a smile. "How could I have possibly refused her request?"

"How indeed?" Alan agreed, feeling his own eyes watering as he listened to Angela's story.

Samantha tugged at her arm to get her attention and pointed to the tote bag. " Do you want your crayons sweetie? " The little girl nodded and Angela pulled a box of crayons and a notepad from the tote bag "Here you go baby." she said placing the items on the table in front of her.

She turned back to face Alan. "And a few moments ago she spoke for the second time. " Her voice caught in her throat as she gazed hopefully into his eyes. "Mr. Eppes I believe your sons can bring her back to me. Would it be alright for her to visit them?"

Alan covered his mouth with his hand as he listened to her and didn't bother to wipe at the stray tears sliding down his cheeks.

"I ah…" He cleared his throat. "My sons…..both of them….are unconscious. They've been comatose since the rescue."

"Oh…my dear man." Angela gasped, as new tears trailed down her cheeks.

The little girl shoved a picture across the table and both of them stared in amazement at the drawing.

Three stick figures were walking across the desert with a yellow sun drawn at the top of the page.

"Uncle Donnie." The little girl said pointing to one of the figures. "Uncle Chawlie." she said pointing to the figure with curly hair. Between them and holding their hands was a smaller figure. "Sammy." She said grinning up at them, her blue eyes lighting up with excitement.

TBC


	26. Chapter 26

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1:

A/N: As always, I truly appreciate your reviews.

Chapter 26:

Speechless, Alan stared at the picture that Samantha had drawn and swallowed thickly. His gaze drifted to the face of the little girl, now sitting across from him and once again sipping her juice. He felt a hand cover his and he looked up; focusing on the young woman's face.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know." Angela apologized tearfully. "I shouldn't have troubled you with my problems." She started to gather her things together. "Please believe me when I say that I would not have come here today if I had known how severely they had been injured. The news reports just said that they had been hospitalized."

Alan stretched his hand toward her. "Wait. Please stay, I ….I just need a few minutes to think."

The young woman nodded and looked away, unable to speak. She wiped the tears from her cheeks and then turned to her daughter, urging her to eat more of her lunch. When the little girl refused she picked up the sandwich and held it to the child's mouth until she took a small bite out of it. Sighing, Angela placed it back on the plate and looked up just as Alan began to speak.

"Do you think that it would really help her to see them? I mean, I'm not sure how she would benefit from seeing my sons when they can't respond to her."

"Obviously, I thought they were able to talk to her." She gazed sadly at him. "You see, the therapist believes that a strong bond was forged between Samantha and your sons while they were together. Somehow they managed to make her feel safe and loved throughout that horrible ordeal and according to Dr. Lancer, the way they were separated had a deep emotional effect on her."

"How they were separated?" Alan's forehead wrinkled in puzzlement.

"Yes. " Angela said, fumbling nervously with her napkin. "According to the information that we got from the FBI, she was clinging to Agent Eppes side when they found her and when the EMT's arrived and they had to pull her away from him, she began to hit the agent holding her, screaming for Uncle Donnie and Uncle Charlie." She paused and tried to get Samantha to take another bite of the sandwich but the little girl just shook her head indicating that she didn't want anymore. Angela shook her head worriedly and kissed the top of the little girls head then turned her attention back to Alan.

"I think the agent's name was Sinclair."

"David Sinclair." Alan offered.

"Yes that was it." She nodded in agreement. "Anyway, Agent Sinclair held her while the medical technician checked her over and they rode with Agent Eppes to the hospital. He told my husband that she held your sons hand the whole way there….said it was the only thing that would calm her down." She tenderly touched her daughter's cheek and sighed. "Of course, when they arrived at the hospital she became upset again when they took him away."

"Charlie was there too, wasn't he?" Alan asked, clearly puzzled now. "I thought they were all found together."

Angela shrugged. "I'm not sure where your other son was….Agent Sinclair didn't mention him at that point." She tilted her head. "I'm surprised that they haven't told you what happened."

He arched an eyebrow. "Well, I've been a little too busy to ask them about the rescue but believe me, I will find out."

"Of course…forgive me."

"There's nothing to forgive my dear, nothing at all." Alan replied soothingly as his eyes drifted back to the little girl who was trying to slurp juice out of a now empty box.

Angela placed the juice box on the table and offered Samantha some French fries. The little girl eagerly ate them and picked up a crayon to draw another picture.

"She won't eat on her own?" Alan asked, puzzled by the child's apparent lack of interest.

"No. The only thing that she will do on her own is draw pictures…and they're all like that one. Most of her actions are just reactive now, the only spontaneous ones involve your sons." She pointed at the drawing. "Notice how they are all smiling, like they were having a good time and not the life and death event that it was. Dr. Lancer says he believes that your sons must have purposely kept the sense of danger from her while they tried to get her to safety." She looked up, her eyes glistening again. "I owe them so much Mr. Eppes. They saved her life and brought her back to me." Angela hesitated and whispered. "I have nightmares about what would have happened to her if your sons hadn't found her in time."

"Alan…. please call me Alan." he requested gently.

"Only if you call me Angela." She replied.

"It's a deal then." he agreed warmly.

"Please tell me about your sons."

Alan sighed heavily before speaking. "I have no idea where to even begin. They both had to have surgery for gunshot wounds but although it was touch and go for awhile, they are beginning to show some improvement now."

"Charlie had numerous injuries besides the gunshot wound; a broken leg, two broken ribs but a severe concussion was the reason that his doctor put him in a medically induced coma. You see, he wanted to reduce any brain swelling that the injury may have caused but the inflammation has begun to subside so yesterday his doctor started to wean him from the drug and I'm hopeful that he will wake up soon."

The older man paused and took a drink of water before going on. "Donnie's physical injuries have begun to heal and although they were life threatening in the beginning, his doctor maintains that they were not the cause of his coma."

She leaned forward and clasped his hand. "He has no idea why Don is in the coma?"

Alan shook is head. "None, he has a theory but nothing to substantiate it. The doctor believes that he suffered something so traumatic that Don doesn't want to face it again and won't come out of the coma until he is ready."

"From what I understand just surviving their ordeal was extremely traumatic." she said sympathetically. "He doesn't believe that could be the reason?"

"It doesn't make any sense to me either." Alan replied with a shrug. "But something that you said has given me an idea."

"Something I said?"

"Yes, but I will need to speak with David to be certain." Noting her confusion he hurried on to explain. "Donnie has always been his brother's protector and if something happened to Charlie that he couldn't prevent, then that just might be the tipping point for him."

"Your sons are close?" She asked softly.

Alan glanced at her compassionate eyes and looked away. She had asked such a simple question and yet the words were far from simple. His sons had bridged a gap that had grown between them when Charlie's gift had become apparent and he had been afraid that they would never be able to cross its massive rift but the boys had proven him wrong. Since the death of their mother, Don and Charlie had struggled to mend that breach and now they shared a bond that Alan knew would keep them close for the rest of their lives.

"There was a time when I worried if they would ever be close but I know better now." He mumbled softly and as he met her eyes his lips curved upward in a smile. "Yes is the answer to your question, they are very close."

Angela smiled but it faded when her eyes drifted to his untouched salad. "I didn't mean to interrupt your lunch…..maybe we should leave so you can finish it."

"Actually, I wasn't hungry before but I am now. Why don't we both eat and then we can decide what to do?" He suggested and at her nod began to eat his salad with a renewed energy; the young woman had given him an idea and he was eager to talk it over with Dr. Martinson.

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_It was easy to forget about your problems and worries within the realm of the white mist. It was a world of serenity; an idyllic haven without fear, pain or loss; a place where both of the brothers were experiencing feelings that they hadn't shared in a very long time. Light hearted banter flowed easily between them as they wandered through the soothing and never ending expanse of the white mist. _

_As a matter of fact the only thing that worried Don at all was the fear of becoming separated from his brother and he had no intention of letting that become a reality. The agent had lost count of how many times he had heard the voices or the mechanical noises. At times he was sure the voices were familiar; his Dad calling out for him to come back or Robin pleading with him to wake up._

_Each time the sounds came to him Don would glance at his brother looking for a sign that he had heard them too but the results were always the same. Charlie couldn't hear the noises and as long as this was the case then Don was determined to ignore them._

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They left the cafeteria together but Alan wanted to make a phone call and Angela needed to take Samantha to the rest room so they planned to meet back at the elevators within fifteen minutes.

Alan's finger pressed the speed dial as soon as he stepped outside; the phone to his ear, he walked around until he found an empty bench and sat down just as a voice crackled over the airwaves.

"Sinclair."

"David….ah…I know you're probably busy but is there any chance that you could come over to the hospital right now?"

"Alan did something happen to Don or Charlie?"

"No…no….everything is okay" The older man was quick to assure his friend. "Well…not okay…what I mean is they're still the same."

"Are you okay?" David's concerned voice responded. "What's going on?" Colby's anxious voice echoed in the background.

"Don's doctor asked me a question and I think you might have the answer…could you come over?"

"Sure. Actually we're just leaving the courthouse so we can be there in about twenty minutes."

"That'll be perfect David. Thanks." Alan closed his phone and hurried back inside, quickly side stepping around a wheel chair in his haste to get back to his sons.

He found Angela and Samantha waiting patiently beside of the elevator and together they stepped aboard; working their way to the back as more people stepped inside. Just as the door closed he felt a small hand take his and he looked down in surprise. Samantha's head was tilted up and she timidly met his eyes. He smiled at her to let her know that it was okay before she turned her gaze back to her mother.

Angela held her other hand and when the door opened they walked out together. Alan couldn't help but think of the picture that the little girl had drawn; it lifted his heart when he realized that Samantha trusted him because he was Don and Charlie's father and that was a very good feeling indeed.

"Nurse Lowell?" Alan asked as soon as they reached the nurse's station. "Have my sons been returned to their room?"

It was the same nurse that had been on duty when Angela had arrived earlier and her face broke into a smile when she saw her standing behind the elderly man.

"Charlie has been returned Mr. Eppes but we're still waiting for Don to be brought back." her eyes drifted to the young woman. "I see you found him."

Angela grinned. "Yes, we did."

Alan glanced between them and arched an eyebrow. "Why do I get the feeling that I'm a victim of a conspiracy?"

Both women laughed. "I think you watch too many spy movies." the nurse responded with a smile.

"Uh, huh." Alan harrumphed before letting his voice turn serious again. "I would like to add Mrs. Wilkins and her daughter to my son's visitors list."

The nurse nodded and entered their names into the log.

"And could you get word to Dr. Martinson that I need to see him. I may have an answer that he was looking for."

"Certainly Mr. Eppes. I'll try and locate him right away."

"Thank you." he said as he turned away. He stopped at the entrance to the room and glanced down at the child. "Angela, do you think that she will let me hold her? She won't be able to see Charlie…the bed is too high."

"Actually Alan, it's probably better if I carry her since we don't know what her reaction is going to be." She bent down to pick up her daughter and waited for him to open the door.

"At least let me take your bag." he said, picking it up as they entered the room.

"Oh my." Angela said when the door was opened. "That's a lot of flowers."

"Far too many." Alan said with a shrug as he set the bag down against the wall. "I'm going to let the nurses distribute some of them to other patients this afternoon."

"That's a nice idea." Angela commented and followed him to Charlie's bedside.

The tube had been removed from his throat and the oxygen was now being supplied through a nose cannula but that was the only change that Alan could see; Charlie was still unconscious and showing no signs of waking anytime soon.

Angela gasped as her eyes ranged over the injured mathematician. "Oh, dear lord. What did those terrible men do to him?"

Alan didn't have time to answer because at that moment Samantha recognized the young professor. She twisted in her mother's arms and tried to reach for him. "Uncle Chawlie…Uncle Chawlie." she cried out as she tried to touch his face.

"Samantha no!" her mother scolded and pulled the struggling child away from the bed.

"Wait." Alan said stepping forward. "Let me hold her."

Alan carried Samantha over to the bed and leaned over so that she could touch his cheek.

The little girl looked up excitedly. "Mommy....its Uncle Chawlie!"

Angela took her in her arms. "Yes baby…Uncle Charlie." She looked at Alan; her eyes bright with unshed tears and whispered. "She called me Mommy."

"Want him to wake up." Samantha said as she gazed at the sleeping figure.

Tears glistening in his own eyes, Alan patted her softly on the back. "Me too, little one, me too."

The door opened and a nurse and orderly entered pushing Don on a gurney. The nurse and attendant swiftly transferred him to his own bed and re-connected the monitors. A few moments later they left the room with a quiet nod to Alan and Angela.

Once again Alan took Samantha in his arms and walked to the side of Don's bed. At first the little girl didn't recognize him because the oxygen mask that he was wearing covered so much of his face but as soon as she realized who it was she became excited and reached for him.

"Uncle Donnie….Uncle Donnie. " she cried out and Alan leaned over far enough for her to pat him on the forehead. "Wake up. " When nothing happened she looked up at Alan. "Make em wake up. "

"We have to let him sleep right now sweetheart but I promise that I will try and wake him up later." He handed Samantha back to her mother and reached down to pull Don's blanket up a little higher.

"Maybe we should step outside now." he said motioning for Angela and the little girl to follow.

They found chairs in a lounge area in a room across from the elevators and Alan chose a seat where he had a good view of the doors; he was anxiously awaiting David and Colby's arrival and didn't want to miss them when they stepped from the elevator. Angela sat in the chair next to him and pulled her daughter onto her lap.

"Make 'em wake up Mommy." Samantha demanded, her small blue eyes brimming with tears.

"Listen to me baby. " The young woman said as she smoothed her daughter's hair away from her face. "Uncle Donnie and Uncle Charlie are very sick and they need to sleep to get better so we can't wake them up yet." She paused considering what else she could say to make her understand. "You want them to get better….right?"

Samantha nodded her head enthusiastically. "Uh…huh."

"Good, then I think its time that we went home." She glanced up at Alan. "We can come back tomorrow if it's okay with Mr. Eppes and maybe they will be awake by then."

"I think that's a wonderful idea." Alan agreed and then winked at the little girl. "Maybe tonight you can draw some more of those pictures and if they're awake tomorrow you can show your drawings to them. I'm sure they would like to see them."

"Okay." she said quietly.

Alan stood up with them and Angela hugged him tightly; whispering softly in his ear. "You helped bring my baby back to me….I can't think of any words that would express how much that means to me. You'll always have a special place in my heart Alan." Her voice choked up and she hugged him again before she stepped back to wipe her tears. Not to be left out Samantha lifted her arms upward and Alan knelt down so he could hug her too.

"See you tomorrow kiddo." Alan said as Angela took her by the hand and headed for the elevator. The little girl waved at him and he waved back, a warm feeling coursing through his body. There was no doubt in his mind that his sons had formed a special relationship with the child, after all, he thought in amazement, she had already conquered his heart and he had only known her for two hours.

"Alan? Alan, is something wrong?"

He was so lost in thought that he hadn't noticed Amita and Larry approaching. They had been coming over every day after class; sitting with his sons and talking to them. The doctors insisted that Don and Charlie could hear what was going on around them so everyone was taking turns reading and talking to them. Robin and Amita would come over in the evenings, alternating their visits so that each of them could read to the boys. Robin would read passages from Don's favorite books and Amita would discuss formulas and equations with Charlie hoping it would bring him back sooner.

"I'm fine." he said. "Did you see that little girl, the one with the blond curls?"

Amita's brows knitted together. "Yes, but I didn't think children were allowed on this floor."

Alan chuckled. "Normally they are not but that was her."

Larry scratched his head. "To whom are you referring Alan?"

"Her." Amita repeated, and then her eyes widened. "Her…you mean Samantha?"

"Oh my." Larry said. "How is the little girl doing?"

"Better now that she saw Don and Charlie." Alan grinned. "She's also coming back tomorrow."

Amita grabbed his arm. "Did they wake up?"

He caught her hand and his smile faded. "No but I'm hopeful that it will be soon.'

"Oh." The light went out of her eyes and she sighed. "Well, I think I'll go in now."

"I'll give you a few minutes and then I'll join you." Larry said as she turned to leave. He turned back to his friend. "Are you sure that you are alright?"

"I'll be better when they wake up."

"Won't we all?" Larry mumbled and left to join Amita.

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_Charlie glanced sideways at his brother. "The sounds are coming more often now aren't they? "_

"_I don't hear anything Charlie." Don lied, he had stopped mentioning the noises to his brother because it would inevitably lead to an argument._

_The young professor stopped and placed a hand on Don's forearm. "Maybe you should follow them this time." he urged but the agent just shook his head and looked away. _

"_Don….think about this….maybe it's your destiny to return."_

_Don's head whipped around, eyes flashing angrily. "And yours to stay? " He pushed Charlie's hand away. "Destiny? What about the destiny that was predicted for you when you were eight years old? You know the ones that I mean, the big discoveries that everyone predicted that you would make....what about that destiny Charlie? " He looked away but not before Charlie saw the guilt reflecting in his brown eyes. "Now you'll never make those amazing discoveries and it's my fault!"_

"_What if this is my destiny?" Charlie asked tentatively, trying a different tactic. "What if this is what I was meant to do all along?" _

_Don turned, eyes widening incredulously. "To die in the desert?"_

"_To help save Samantha." Charlie replied, stubbornly raising his chin. "Answer this question for me? Would the FBI have found Samantha without my help?"_

"_Eventually." Don replied, refusing to back down._

"_Let me rephrase the question." Charlie countered. "Would you have found her in time to save her life?"_

_Don frowned; rubbing his hand over his mouth as he studied his brother and then muttered. "Probably not."_

_Charlie stepped closer until they were standing eye to eye. "Look." he said softly. "All I'm asking you to do is consider the possibility that helping to save her life was my destiny…that my gift and all of those years of studying led me to developing the equation that helped us find her." _

_Don didn't say anything, just stood silently letting his brother's words wash over him, but Charlie could see that he was losing the argument. _

"_Listen to me." he pleaded. "I'm okay with this because as far as I'm concerned her life is far more important than any discovery that I might have made….and Don, what happened wasn't your fault?"_

_Don stared for a brief moment and then spun around; his voice and body rigid. "I'm going on…are you coming?" _

"_Fine! " Charlie shouted, throwing his hands up in frustration as he hurried to catch up with his brother._

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Alan watched Larry enter his son's room and then shuffled back to the waiting area and sat down heavily in a chair. He sighed as he pulled off his glasses and rubbed wearily at his eyes, letting his head fall back against the top of the chair. He must have dozed off because he didn't hear David and Colby enter the room and was startled when the agent called his name. He straightened up suddenly and fumbled to hang onto his glasses; barely catching them before they hit the floor.

"Sorry." he sputtered, gathering himself together. He put his glasses back on and sat up straighter while Colby and David sat down in chairs across from him.

"What's going on Alan?" David asked, leaning forward.

"Don's doctor believes that something happened out there that he doesn't want to face again and that's why he is in the coma" His gaze flickered between the agents. "I need to know about the rescue, specifically, I need to know if Don and Charlie were together when you found them."

David shared a look with his partner and then rubbed his forehead. "Alan, we're still trying to put all of the pieces together and there are details of the case that can't be cleared up until we can talk with Don or Charlie."

"Yes…yes." Alan said impatiently. "I understand that but this is important."

"It's still an active case until Chavez goes to trial so there are some things we aren't allowed to discuss. " Colby added, feeling the need to explain the situation further to his friend.

Alan leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "I'm asking a simple question. Were they found together?"

David and Colby both leaned closer as well and then David shook his head. "No Alan, they were in different locations when we found them."

Alan's eyes widened, he knew it…he was on the right track. "Please tell me about it…I can't help Don unless I know what happened out there."

"Okay." David said in a low voice. "We found Don and the little girl at the base of the mountain, near the road to Hesperia."

"And Charlie?" Alan prompted.

Colby exchanged an uncertain glance with his partner. "Alan….we…ah… found Charlie on the other side of the mountain."

Alan's shoulders slumped and he bowed his head whispering. "Donnie left him behind."

David grabbed his forearm. "I'm sure there is an explanation…Don wouldn't just leave him behind."

"We think that Charlie was hiding just below the trail." Colby said. "Don probably thought he would be safe there until he could return with help. "

"Alan you've got to listen to me." David exclaimed in defense of his friend. "Don wouldn't just leave Charlie there to be found by the Mexicans…he wouldn't do that."

"You're a good friend David." the older man responded. "But you are misreading me. I trust my son's judgment and I know that if Don left his brother behind it was because he had no other choice and you're right, he would have tried to find a safe place for him to hide."

"Only something went wrong." Colby suggested.

"Right." David added.

"But Don would have no way of knowing that…right?" Alan asked suddenly. "I mean, as far as he knew his brother was safe."

'Not necessarily." Colby muttered.

"What does that mean?"

"Well, he might have heard the gunshots." the agent responded.

David stared at his partner thoughtfully. "That's right. We heard the shots that Chavez took at Don, so there's no reason to think that Don couldn't have heard Martinez shoot Charlie or our shots when we took him out."

"Was Don awake when you got there?" Alan asked anxiously.

Colby shook his head. "No, he passed out just before we arrived."

Alan covered his mouth and stared at the two men. He lowered a trembling hand and said softly. "That's it then, that's why he doesn't want to wake up."

David shared a puzzled glance with his partner. "What do you mean Alan?"

The older man shook his head sadly. "Don't you see? It would have torn Donnie apart to leave Charlie behind and he would only have done it if he thought he had found a safe place for him to hide until he returned." He leaned back in the chair and met their eyes. "I believe that Don heard those gunshots and assumed that those men killed his brother. He would have kept going for the little girl's sake and from what you told me before, he almost made it."

David nodded his head. "Yeah, he was close. Another twenty feet and he would have made it to the road."

"There were houses a few feet beyond the road." Colby added quietly.

"This isn't going to be easy." Alan mumbled more to himself than the agents. At their questioning gazes he explained. "Somehow I have to reach Donnie and convince him that Charlie is still alive and that he didn't fail that little girl. '

David tilted his head to the side. "How are you going to do that?"

"Talk to him…all night if I have too." he said stubbornly and rose from his chair.

"Okay if we go see them while we're here?" Colby asked as he stood up.

Alan spotted Dr. Martinson at the nurse's station and started forward. "Go on in. I'm going to have a talk with Donnie's doctor."

David squeezed his shoulder. "Is there anything that we can do to help? We could take turns talking to him tonight too."

Alan swallowed hard and looked away, blinking away the moisture that was collecting in the corner of his eyes but when he looked back he had his emotions under control. His sons needed him and he wasn't going to falter now.

"I appreciate the offer, I really do, but I know Donnie better than anyone else and if I can't reach him, I'm not sure that anyone can."

David nodded and stepped back without another word but his gaze followed the older man as he made his way to the nurse's desk.

"I hope you're right Alan." he muttered softly as he turned to follow Colby.

TBC


	27. Chapter 27

Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Chapter 27:

Alan removed his glasses and slowly massaged the bridge of his nose. He fervently hoped that it would ease the ache that had been steadily growing between his eyes. Lost in thought he leaned his head back until it was resting against the chair and closed his eyes but he didn't sleep, he just needed to think.

How many times had he been in this hospital? Hospitals were places that you tried to avoid, places that you only visited when you had no other choice open to you; it was a place of life and of death.

He did have a connection to this particular hospital though and there were some occasions that he wanted to remember as well as others that he would rather forget. One floor down was the nursery where both of his sons had been born. Their births were joyous memories indeed and even though these events had occurred many years ago he could still picture them as if they were happening at that very moment. That wondrous sense of awe he had felt when he held each of his sons for the first time seemed to envelope him and for a moment he was lost in those long ago memories, re-living that special connection that he had shared with each of them.

But there were bad memories as well and a feeling of gloom replaced his joyful mood. On the other side of the hospital his beloved Margaret had spent many days receiving medical treatment that in the end would prove to be futile. That was a memory he did not want to dwell on and less than six months ago, on this same floor, his oldest son had fought for his life; stabbed while trying to arrest some home invaders.

Life was so very fragile and although he really didn't need another reminder of their frail existence here he was, yet again, sitting in the same hospital and waiting for both of his sons to wake up and push death away for another time.

Alan opened his eyes and studied the prone figures of his sons lying silently on either side of him. What were they feeling? Did they know that they were in a coma or did they think they were asleep and dreaming? The doctors insisted that his sons could hear the sounds around them but could they comprehend what the sounds meant? He hoped so because somehow he had to get through to Donnie and make him realize that he still had something to live for and that he hadn't left his brother behind to die.

His eyes drifted to his youngest; how awful it must have been for him to watch Don walk away knowing that there was a chance the Mexicans might find him. Was he still reliving that horror, trapped in a place that he couldn't escape from or was his incredible mind, even now, working on a level that was way beyond the capabilities of anyone else.

He tilted his head thoughtfully. What was it Charlie had once told him? That sometimes the thoughts in his head were so "purely there" that he couldn't come up with the words to share his wondrous discoveries with other people. He had seen the frustration in Charlie's expressive eyes and had longed to help him but what could he have done? The things his son saw were well beyond his comprehension so he had done the one thing that he knew how to do….what he always did on those occasions. He listened and tried to be supportive, letting him know that he wasn't alone. But Charlie was alone now and Alan could only hope that his doctor was right and that he would wake up on his own, hopefully tomorrow.

He sighed and shifted around in the chair, thankful that the hospital staff had found an overstuffed lounge chair from the waiting area; it would certainly make the long night a little bit easier.

Dr. Martinson had surprised him and had rejected his idea at first but Alan had stubbornly wore him down; he was allowed to stay one night and one night only and after that he would be forced to follow the visitation rules of the hospital. Amita, Robin and Larry wanted to stay as well, but the doctor was adamant; only Alan would be allowed to spend the night.

Alan put his glasses back on and somberly gazed at his oldest son, he was sure that he could reach Don; he just had to find the right words.

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_Their arguments never lasted long; the white mist's calming effect would flow through and around them, quenching any hard feelings or tension left between them. _

"_Do you still think that we can find Dad?" Charlie asked as they strolled along._

"_I can't explain it buddy but I just have this feeling that if we keep walking this way we will eventually find him." At his brother's raised eyebrow, Don scrubbed his hand through his hair and shrugged. " I just think that we'll find him in this direction."_

"_Okay." his brother responded. "Well, there isn't anything else to do anyway so we might as well keep walking."_

_Don glanced sideways at his brother. "How long do you think we've been here?"_

_Charlie shrugged, keeping his eyes straight ahead. "No way of knowing."_

"_Can't you do some kind of calculations to determine that?" _

"_No." Charlie said, stiffening up. "I don't have any data to work with."_

"_Oh….right." Don said thoughtfully studying his brother. Something was wrong, he definitely wasn't himself. "Everything okay?"_

_Charlie glanced around, eyes widening incredulously. "What kind of question is that?" he asked gesturing around him. "Either one or both of us are dead so I think I have a right to be a little disconcerted."_

_Don raised his hands in a placating manner. "Don't get all worked up. You just seem a little off to me, that's all. I just thought that maybe something else was going on."_

"_I'm fine Don." he said, rolling his eyes. "Well, as fine as I can be under the circumstances."_

"_Okay." Don replied, keeping in step with his brother. He still had an uneasy feeling that Charlie was hiding something from him but he wasn't going to push it right now. The beeping sounds had started up again and a rumbling noise was slowly increasing in volume forcing his thoughts in another direction._

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Alan reached for his bottle of water and took a long gulp. His throat was dry from talking for three hours and still Don didn't show any signs that he could hear him. He stood up, arching his back to stretch some of the kinks out of it and glanced at his watch, eyes widening in surprise when he noted the time. Twelve o'clock already, the night was passing by faster than he had expected it too.

"Okay Donnie." he mumbled softly. "Somehow I have to convince you that your brother is still alive."

He moved to Charlie's bedside and pushed a few curls away from his face. "Your hair is getting too long son, you will need to get a trim when you wake up." He said fondly as he traced his son's jaw line gently with his finger.

Amita had been shaving Charlie every day and Alan suspected that doing that small task for him was helping her deal with his condition. She spoke to Charlie while she shaved him and Alan would leave the room to give her a little privacy with the man she loved. In the beginning he tried to tell her that she didn't have to shave him daily but he stopped after the first attempt, realizing that for her, it was a way to be close to him; the only form of intimacy that was open to her and she was desperately clinging to it.

Charlie looked so much younger without the beard and Alan suspected that the reason his son had stopped shaving everyday was because the dark stubble made him look older. His eyes drifted over the young man's body and his stomach roiled; the pain that Charlie had endured at the Mexicans hands must have been excruciating. He swallowed hard against the bile that was forming in his throat and blinked his eyes rapidly to ward against the moisture collecting in the corners of his eyes. The still figure before him tore at his heartstrings for it was unnatural for his son to be so inactive; Charlie had been a bundle of energy from the day he was born, a passionate soul full of wonder and curiosity with the ability to discover things that no one else was capable of and it unnerved Alan to see him so silent.

"Open your eyes Charlie…its time to wake up." he pleaded softly. "It's your voice that your brother needs to hear and …..and I need to hear it too. "

But the young man's eyes remained closed and Alan's shoulders drooped; sighing audibly he softly patted his son's arm as he turned and stepped over to the other bed. He smoothed Don's hair back from his forehead and was surprised by its length. "Maybe you should get a haircut too." he muttered softly.

Robin had been shaving Don as well and he smiled when he thought of their relationship. He had been so happy that his oldest had finally found someone to love and he thought Robin was the perfect choice.

"You have a lot to live for Donnie and it's time you came back to us." He looked up suddenly as the night nurse entered the room.

"How are they doing Mr. Eppes?" She asked as she went about her duties.

Alan didn't recognize her and he squinted at her nametag before speaking. "You're new here…er…Nurse Benedict is it?"

"That's right." She said as she adjusted Don's nose cannula; the doctor had replaced the oxygen mask earlier in the evening. "The regular nurse called in sick so I was transferred from another department."

He simply nodded and answered her question. "They're still the same, I haven't noticed any changes."

"It's only twelve o'clock Mr. Eppes, there's still a chance they might wake up tonight." She patted his arm. "Don't give up." she added encouragingly.

She paused at the door. "We have some fresh coffee brewing in the lounge area, feel free to help yourself. Good night Mr. Eppes."

"Good night Nurse Benedict and I might take you up on that coffee."

Alan waited for the door to close and then moved back to Don's bedside.

"I hope this works son…I don't know what else to do."

With a trembling hand he pulled a small silver voice recorder from his pocket and set it on the bed stand near his son's head and at the press of a button Charlie's soft voice echoed around the small room. The young professor would often practice his lectures and record them before actually giving a seminar and Alan had hurried home to retrieve the recorder as soon as the doctor had given his okay. If Donnie needed to hear his brother's voice to wake up then Alan was determined to let him hear it.

Shoulders bent with fatigue, Alan turned away and shuffled toward the door. A fresh cup of coffee was just what he needed and he left the room with the sound of Charlie's voice echoing in his ears.

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"_Don?" The young mathematician asked for the second time, finally grabbing his brother's arm to get his attention. "What is wrong with you?" _

_Don rubbed his forehead and looked away. "Nothing….I'm just getting a headache….that's all." _

_Charlie narrowed his eyes and leaned closer. "A headache?" he repeated. "Something strange is happening….that peaceful feeling is disappearing and every now and then I feel a sharp pain in my leg and shoulder."_

"_Yeah." Don agreed. "I get this stabbing pain in my shoulder too." He rubbed his shoulder as another sharp pain permeated the white mist._

_Charlie suddenly stumbled and came to a stop._

"_What's wrong?" Don asked worriedly, coming to a standstill himself. _

_The young man's head swiveled around, his eyes wide with wonder. "Don, I can see them again, moving around in my mind."_

"_See what Charlie?" _

"_The numbers…they're back! It feels so good to have them swirling around again." the young professor said as he sank slowly to the ground. "I thought I'd lost them forever." he added softly. _

_Don sat down next to him. "I didn't realize….I mean…why didn't you say anything?"_

_Charlie shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know….I guess I just figured that you wouldn't understand." he ducked his head and looked away._

_Don opened his mouth ready with a quick retort but the words choked in his throat. Charlie was right, the man that he used to be wouldn't have understood but he had changed and he had learned the truth. The numbers were as much a part of Charlie as his dark curls were. _

_Speechless, Don stared at him. "Your right." He agreed sadly, meeting his brother's eyes as Charlie turned back to face him. "I wouldn't have understood five years ago but I think I do now and I'm sorry." _

_Charlie opened his mouth to speak but Don raised a hand to stop him. "No…. don't interrupt because I need to tell you this. I wish I had been a better brother to you when we were growing up but I can't change the past Charlie." he paused, gathering his thoughts. "It's like the last few years has stripped away a curtain and I've been allowed to see what is behind it…and I see you and the numbers as one. I understand now…you didn't pull Mom and Dad's attention away from me on purpose did you?" At Charlie's shake of his head, Don continued on. "I wish I could have seen it sooner….I'm sorry buddy." _

"_Don…..please...I don't want an apology. We were kids and I wasn't the easiest brother to get along with either. That's behind us now…agreed?" _

_Charlie's worried expression prompted Don to smile. "Agreed." His smile faded suddenly and he clapped is hands over his ears. "It's so loud!" he screamed in agony._

_Charlie scooted closer and grabbed his arms. "Don, what is so loud? Answer me!" _

_Don shook his head. "A voice…..words….fragments of sentences..…I..I…don't know….coming at me from all sides." His pain-filled eyes met his brothers. "You have to hear them now….tell me that you hear them!" he pleaded desperately._

_Charlie sat back on his heels and strained to hear the voices but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't hear them. He looked away unable to watch his brother suffer any longer._

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Three o'clock and still nothing; Alan was beginning to give up hope. He reset the little recorder again and sat down just as Charlie's soft voice filled the room. He found it both comforting and disconcerting as his son's familiar voice began its lecture but its beloved owner remained in silent repose.

"**Remember, it was Archimedes who proved that the volume of a sphere is equal to two-thirds the volume of a circumscribed cylinder. He regarded this as his most vital accomplishment. So…..**

Alan leaned forward no longer listening to his son's lecture. A movement had caught his eye and his hand came up to cover his mouth as he gazed intently at Don's hand. Had it moved or was he imaging it. Sure, both of them had muscle spasms now and then but this looked different somehow. He rose slowly, not taking his eyes from his son's face and increased the volume on the small recorder. He set it back down again and waited, feeling his heart flutter as hope began to rise in his chest.

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_Don stood up suddenly and glanced anxiously around him letting his hands fall at his sides. It did no good to cover his ears, the words found a way in anyway. _

_**Archimedes……volume….sphere….two-thirds…**_

_Random words spoken by ……Charlie. But how was that possible? His brother was standing right beside of him and yet the words appeared to be coming out of the mist._

"_How are you doing that?" he asked, roughly grabbing his brother by the arms._

"_Doing what?" Charlie asked nervously. "Don what are you hearing?"_

"_You Charlie. I hear your voice coming from out there somewhere." he said, gesturing at the white mist in front of them. Suddenly a look of hope crossed his features. "Maybe you can get through the barrier now….come on, let's try again." _

_The agent grabbed his brother's forearm and headed forward, trying to get closer to the voices._

"_**Donnie, listen to me. Charlie is alive; he didn't die in the desert. Follow my voice son and come back to me."**_

"_Don why are you running?" Charlie called out as the agent pulled ahead of him. _

_Don stopped, turning around to face his brother, excitement lighting up his eyes. "Come on Charlie, you can get through the barrier now. I heard Dad's voice…he said you're alive….we can go through together."_

_The white mist suddenly began to swirl around them, its colors shifting from white to gray so fast that it was making them dizzy. Just as quickly, everything became still….and then ….a darkness began to replace the white mist. _

"_What's that black stuff coming toward us?" Charlie asked worriedly, slowing his steps. _

"_I don't know." his brother responded stopping a few feet in front of him. "Stay close buddy." he added, suddenly apprehensive. _

"_Maybe we should go back." Charlie said becoming anxious himself._

_Don started to answer him but as he turned around to face his brother the words froze on his tongue. Just a second ago Charlie had been standing right beside of him and now he was at least fifty feet away. In a panic he started to run toward the younger man but there was an opposing force working against him and it was pulling him backwards…toward the darkness. _

"_Charlie!" Don called out anxiously. "Hurry! You've got to get closer!"_

"_I'm trying! " Charlie yelled running forward. Miraculously he managed to cross the distance in time to grab his brother's hand but it was only for a brief moment. A second later his hand slipped from Don's and the distance grew between them._

_Panic rising in his voice, Charlie called out to his brother and gazed into his tormented eyes just before Don vanished into the darkness._

"_Don!" he screamed and he sank to his knees as the darkness vanished and the white mist returned._

"_Charlie!"_

_Don called out desperately, stretching his arm out in an effort to grip his brother's hand again but it was to late ….Charlie had vanished and his hand met with nothing but air. Panic-stricken he tried to claw his way back to the white mist but the invisible force was too much for him and quickly pulled him down into the darkness. _

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Alan gasped as tears slipped from beneath Don's closed eyelids and slid down the side of his face. He tenderly caught them with his finger and moments later felt his own tears as Don's eyes fluttered open. However, his moment of joy vanished momentarily when he saw the grief reflecting in his son's dark brown eyes.

"Don..nie." he stammered. "It's...it's... alright son, everything is going to be okay." Alan turned quickly and shut off the recorder before pressing the button for the nurse.

"Dad?" Don whispered in a rough and gravely voice.

Disoriented, the agent blinked several times as he tried to bring his Dads' face into focus but before he had a clear view of him the nurse arrived and forced Alan to move away from the bedside. She closed the curtain around him and checked him over thoroughly. By the time she left Don was ready to fall asleep again but he forced himself to stay awake until he could speak with his Dad. He released a sigh of relief when the nurse finally left and he could look into the eyes of his father.

"Good…to…see…you." Don rasped in a voice thick with emotion. .

"I can't tell you what a relief it is to see you with your eyes open son." Alan replied softly. "I was beginning to think that you were never going to wake up."

Don's brows knitted together. "How long?"

Alan glanced through the window at the brightening sky. "Today makes the sixth day." His voice choked as he turned back to face his son. "You've been in a coma for six days."

Stunned, Don could only gaze at him. Six days, he had been out for six days.

The nurse entered the room interrupting them and handed Alan a cup of ice chips and a plastic spoon.

"Only a spoonful at a time Mr. Eppes and at least fifteen minutes apart."

"Don't you worry, I'll take good care of him. " Alan glanced at his watch as the nurse left and moved closer to the bed so he could feed Don the ice chips.

Don savored the feel of the ice as it slowly melted and slid down his throat. "Feels good." he whispered.

"I bet it does." Alan chuckled, patting him gently on the arm.

A wave of grief suddenly came over Don and he had to look away from his father. His memory had returned and along with it the loss of his brother hit him like a physical blow. Did his Dad already know? Is that why he hadn't mentioned Charlie yet?"

"Donnie? "

Don rolled his head back and met his father's eyes. Unshed tears glistened brightly in his eyes and this time when he tried to talk a sob escaped his throat.

Concerned, Alan started to reach for the call button but Don shook his head.

"What is it son?"

"Charlie." he answered with a sob. "I killed Charlie."

"No…no…no…son. Charlie isn't dead." he said getting up and going around to the other side of the bed. "Your brother is right here with us." Alan pushed the curtain back and stood aside so that Don had a clear view of his brother.

Surprise and then hope replaced the grief that Alan had seen in his eyes a few seconds before.

"Why doesn't he wake up?' Don asked anxiously.

"Donnie, your brother is in a medically induced coma. " his eyes flickered to his youngest and lingered there as he spoke. "He came in with a severe concussion and his doctor put him in the coma to lessen the chance of any brain damage. The swelling is going down now so Dr. Flanders took him off of the drug and he should be waking up soon." Alan grinned. "And then I'll have both of my sons back."

Disbelief reflected in Don's eyes. "That's why he couldn't get through the barrier…we both thought it was because he had died. "

Confused, Alan asked. "What are you talking about? "

Don shook his head. "Nothing. He's going to be okay isn't he?"

Alan's grin faded. "We won't know that until he wakes up son."

Don's eyes were becoming heavy and although he fought to keep them open they began to close of their own accord.

"Sorry." he breathed, his head rolling to the side.

"Sleep Donnie. I'll be here when you wake up….we both will."

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Dr. Martinson stepped back and made a few notes on Don's chart. "I want to schedule another EEG just to make certain we don't have any surprises but other than that Agent Eppes, you're healing nicely. Are you feeling any pain?"

Don shook his head slowly. "No, whatever meds you have me on seem to be working. I feel an ache in my shoulder every now and then but I don't feel any real pain."

Martinson nodded his head. "That's to be expected. Do you have any other questions?"

"When can I go home?"

The doctor grinned and glanced at Alan. "I hear that question more than any other." He looked back a Don. "Relax and enjoy our hospitality for a few more days and then we'll talk about sending you home." With a nod of his head, he turned and left the room.

Alan smiled broadly. "I understand they're bringing you breakfast soon. You'll probably be allowed soft foods to start with but that is better than just liquids."

"Hey do you think I could have some coffee? That would really taste good." he asked with a grin.

"I'll check with the nurse when she comes in." Alan said as he stood up and opened the curtains separating his sons before moving a small folding chair from the left side of Don's bed and placing it in the area between the beds. The big chair had been returned to the lounge area not long after Don had awakened to get it out of the way. He leaned over and fussed with Charlie's blankets then pushed the chair a little closer to Don's bed and sat down with a sigh.

"No change, huh?" Don asked, shifting around so he had a clear view of his brother.

"No" Alan sighed. "I thought he would be awake by now but maybe the drug isn't completely out of his system yet."

"What's with all of the flowers?" Don asked noticing them for the first time.

Alan waved his hand. "Oh there were a lot more than this. They've been coming everyday from all over the country." He leaned forward and patted his son's hand. "You and your brother are very popular. I've started giving them away to other patients because there isn't any more room in here but I kept the cards so you guys could look at them."

Confused, Don shook his head. "I don't understand."

Alan squeezed his hand. "You're heroes Donnie, both of you. The story is all over the news….well not all of it of course, but enough so that the public knows that you and your brother saved that little girl's life."

Don huffed. "I was just doing my job Dad." his eyes drifted to his brother. "Charlie is the hero."

"Well, the rest of us disagree with that assessment."

Don's brow wrinkled in puzzlement. "Rest of us?"

Crossing his arms, Alan leaned back in his chair and smiled smugly. "Yeah, the rest of the world."

Don rolled his eyes and laid his head back. "Have you talked to Robin?" he asked deciding to change the subject.

"She's on her way over and before you ask, I have also talked to David. He'll be over a little later too."

The door opened and an orderly entered pushing a breakfast cart. Alan rose and moved the chair out of the way for her.

The lack of sleep was finally catching up to him and Alan yawned widely.

"I think I'll go home and catch a couple of hours sleep but I'll be back by lunchtime." he said. "Robin will be here soon." He started for the door then remembered to ask the orderly about the coffee.

"I'll check with the nurse." she promised.

Alan stopped by the door and looked back. Don's smile lifted his heart but as his eyes drifted to the other bed, it fell again. "_Wake up son." _he silently pleaded and with that he turned and left the room.

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_Charlie wandered through the white mist alone now. There was no way to determine time here so he had no way of knowing how long Don had been gone; he just knew that he missed him._

_After a while he sat down and gave into the numbers that were swirling around in his mind. Concentrating on them helped him deal with the pain of losing his brother and soon he was lost in infinite calculations. _

_Suddenly, his head came up and he stared into the distance. Was that a noise? He clamored to his feet and tilted his head to the side, straining to hear the distant sound._

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Don lay on his side staring at his sleeping brother, reflecting on every thing that had happened. Robin had been in at nine o'clock and would have stayed longer but Don had insisted that she keep her court date so she had left promising to come back in the afternoon.

David and Colby had arrived a few minutes later to take his formal deposition and afterwards had filled him in on the aspects of the case. Samantha was home safe with her family and JuanChavez was being held without bail at the High Desert Prison. Don couldn't suppress a shudder as he thought of the man; the Mexican would have killed him and the little girl without a second thought if David and the team hadn't arrived in time.

The door opened and he looked up as his father walked into the room. A few hours sleep and a shower had done wonders for the man and he was smiling as he approached his bedside. Alan stopped by Charlie's bed to check on him and fussed with his blankets even though they didn't need it. He patted his son's hand gently and turned away, catching Don's eye.

"How are you doing?" he asked coming alongside of the bed and giving Don's hand a squeeze.

"I'm okay Dad." he responded quietly. "I'll feel better when Charlie wakes up."

Alan nodded his head. "That makes two of us Donnie." His eyes lit ups suddenly. "In the meantime I ran into someone that really wants to see you. Are you up for another visit?"

Despondent over Charlie's condition Don shook his head and sighed. "I don't know Dad, I'm getting a little tired now." he rolled his head to the side and glanced at his brother.

Recognizing his son's melancholy mood Alan decided to act quickly. "I think you'll want to see this person." Before Don could protest further he raised his head and called out. "You can come in now."

"Dad, what are you doing? I told….."

Irritated at his Dad's decision to ignore his request Don started to protest but the words froze in his throat as a young woman and a child entered the room. Alan met her and picked up the little girl, carrying her over to his bedside.

"Uncle Donnie…Uncle Donnie." The little girl cried, stretching her arms out to him.

Don's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Sammy?" he said stretching out his good arm to hug her back.

Alan held her so she could hug Don's neck and plant a kiss on his cheek and the agent kissed her forehead as Alan pulled her back.

Don couldn't believe that she was the same little girl that he had carried across the desert. Curly blonde hair, a clean face and clean clothes had changed her dramatically but the little blue eyes remained the same. Unshed tears glistened in his eyes as he gazed at her smiling face.

"You look great!" he said and his grin broadened. "Hey, you've got curls!"

She giggled and wanted to get closer so Don motioned for his Dad to sit her on the bed beside of him.

"You have to be careful baby, you don't want to hurt Uncle Donnie." her mother warned.

"Okay Mommy." The little girl answered and snuggled closer to Don as he wrapped his good arm around her and hugged her tight.

Angela extended her hand to Don. "I can't thank you enough Agent Eppes." she said bending over to kiss his cheek. "You saved my little girl,"

"I didn't do it alone Mrs. Wilkins. I couldn't have done it without my brother's help." his said, his eyes flickering toward the other bed.

"I know and I look forward to thanking him too." She responded warmly.

Samantha lifted her arms to Alan. "Wanna see Uncle Chawlie."

Alan smiled and picked her up. "Come on kiddo."

"You two have become friends, huh?" Don teased catching his Dad's eye.

"She's an impressive young lady." Alan responded over his shoulder as he carried the little girl to the next bed.

"Wake up….wake up…Uncle Chawlie." She called to him as she stretched out her arm, her small hand opening and closing. "Wanna give him a kwiss."

Alan obediently lowered her so she could kiss Charlie on the cheek and then set her on her feet between the beds and with a wink at Angela he said. "I think she's gaining some of her weight back."

Angela smiled. "Actually her appetite has increased a lot since yesterday."

"Put…one…foot…in…fwont..of..the…othew" Samantha sang and grinned shyly when she caught Don's eye above the railing on his bed. "I've been pwacticing Uncle Donnie."

Don smiled encouragingly. "You're doing a good job too."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't let her disturb you like this." Angelea turned to walk around the bed to stop Samantha but Don caught her arm.

"Please let her sing. You have no idea how good it makes me feel to see her happy and to hear her singing."

"Okay." she said, "but you have to let me know when it becomes annoying."

"Ain't gonna happen." he said smiling, as he watched Sammy skip between the beds and sing her song.

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_Charlie started forward trying to locate the origin of the beeping noise and after a while he could hear other sounds; voices echoing over a great distance and every now and then a random word would escape from the jumbled sounds._

_**foot….anothew……..walkn…..doow…….**_

"_Sammy? No, it couldn't be….could it?" She was safe….she couldn't be here. _

_He hurried forward, suddenly worried that the little girl was lost somewhere within the white mist._

_**hope…..he….wakes…soon**_

"_Dad?" he called out anxiously but there was no answer. _

_**wanted……curls…..like….**_

_Charlie's heart quickened at the sound of Don's voice. He was headed in the right direction and he knew for sure when the white mist began to swirl around him, faster and faster, its colors shifting from white to gray just as it had in the moments before Don had disappeared. Breathless now, he ran foreword but stopped suddenly when every thing became still again. He turned in circles looking all around until he saw the blackness approaching on the horizon. _

_Charlie wasn't afraid of the darkness, he was more afraid of remaining alone in the mist. Besides, he told himself, the darkness had taken Don so maybe it would carry him to the place that it had taken his brother…..at least he hoped that it would._

_It was natural, he supposed, to resist a force that pulled at you and although he tried not to resist the sudden pull of the darkness, he couldn't help himself. Panic filled him as the sounds and voices became so loud that it seemed they were going to crush him. He tried to get away, but it was to no avail; the darkness was too massive and powerful. _

……_**peanut butter….**_

_The last words he heard made no sense at all and he lost all consciousness as the darkness overwhelmed him. _

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"Put…one…foot…in…fwont…of..the..othew…and..soon..you'll…be…walkin…out..the..doow"

Sammy sang softly as she skipped up and down between the two beds' stopping occasionally to peek in between the bed rails to see if Charlie was awake yet or play peek a boo with Don through his bed rails.

"Samantha honey, what do you want for lunch?" Angela asked, after a glance at her watch.

The little girl glanced around at her mother. "A peanut butter sandwich."

Don made a face and winked at Sammy. "How could you possibly eat another peanut butter sandwich?"

Noting the confused look on Angela's and his father's faces, Don explained that the only food they had to eat during their trek across the desert was peanut butter bread, chocolate chip cookies and water.

Sammy giggled. "I like peanut butter."

"No! No! Please..no…more…peanut….butter." A low, soft voice rasped out in protest and four pairs of eyes turned toward the other bed.

A high pitched voice suddenly squealed excitedly "Uncle Chawlie!" and the young mathematician opened his eyes to meet a pair of small blue ones peeking between the bed rails of his bed.

"Sammy?" he whispered in surprise.

Alan rushed over to his bedside and grabbed his hand. "Charlie…oh my God son…you're finally awake."

"Dad?"

Angela laughed out loud and picked up her daughter, holding her so that she could see the young man clearly.

"Hey, make some space over there." Another voice urgently requested and Alan moved slightly to the side giving Don and Charlie a clear view of one another.

They're eyes locked and it felt as if everything they had shared passed between them. The look encompassed it all, from the life and death struggle in the desert to the time spent in the white mist, both of them acknowledging that it had all been real.

"Welcome back bro." Don said quietly and as his brother grinned at him, his own face broke into a broad smile, his eyes crinkling at the corners.

TBC

Author's Note. The Epilogue will follow next week and Walt's connection to the Eppes family will finally be revealed.


	28. Chapter 28

-1Inner Peace

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I truly appreciate all of your reviews and I want to thank everyone that put this story on alert. I'd like to say a special thank-you to those people that have marked "Inner Peace" as a favorite.

Chapter 28-Epilogue:

The buzzer rang loudly, signaling the visitor at the High Desert Prison Facility to move forward. He followed closely behind the guards, his head swiveling around nervously as he made his way further into the bowels of the large gray facility. This was one aspect of his job that he could do without and more than once had thought about going into private practice.

Claude Bellis, court appointed attorney for Juan Chavez shuffled along the narrow corridors clutching his brief case in front of his chest like it was a shield. Tall and thin, he hunched his shoulders as he walked alongside of the guards trying to make himself a smaller target in the event of a prison riot.

"Here we are." Jake Latimer, the burly guard on his left, announced as they came to a standstill next to an 8 x 8 cell containing a small table and two chairs.

Bellis frowned and adjusted his glasses as he peered through the bars at the stark cell. "One of you guys will stay here, right? "

"Don't sweat it man." Brad Johnson, the African-American guard on his right commented. "We'll both be nearby if you need any help."

Bellis glanced sideways at the guard and thought bitterly. _"It was easy for him to talk that way; after all he was built like an NFL linebacker." _Claude jumped as the sound of a cell door opening and closing echoed eerily through the corridor.

Johnson looked over the man's head at his partner and snickered as the other man mouthed an insulting comment about the attorney.

Bellis didn't even notice the exchange because his eyes were glued to the three men approaching from the end of the corridor.

Juan Chavez, escorted by two guards, arrogantly strode toward the cell; his eyes raking the man's figure with disdain.

"Who is this gabacho? " He demanded as Johnson opened the door to the cell and nudged his arm to enter. "You said my lawyer was here man, I don't know this guy."

"Stop your jawing Chavez and get inside. "

Juan shot him a look of hatred and then stepped inside the cell.

"Sit down!" The guard ordered gruffly.

"All right….all right!" The Mexican muttered angrily and pulled out one of the chairs, deliberately trying to rattle the lawyer by letting the legs scrape against the cement floor.

Bellis glanced nervously at the guards before entering the cell and jumped when they slammed the door shut. Taking a deep breath he slowly made his way to the other side of the table and placed his brief case on top of it before sitting down.

He swallowed hard; Chavez was even more intimidating with only the small table separating them. The man's face was fixed in a scowl and he had started tapping his hand cuffs menacingly against the table top.

Trying to ignore Chavez's obvious attempts to unsettle him, Bellis opened his brief case and removed a large, thick manila folder. "Ah-hem." Claude cleared his throat. "Mr. Chavez, my name is Claude Bellis and I've been appointed to be your attorney."

Juan narrowed his eyes and leaned forward. "Where's the other guy…..Denton. What happened to him?"

"Ah….Mr. Denton has asked to be excused from this case and I have been appointed to replace him."

"Why did he do that?" he asked suspiciously.

"I..ah..am not privy to that information." He adjusted his glasses and blinked owlishly at the Mexican. "Do you have any objections to my being your attorney? You can refuse my services." he said, silently wishing that Juan would turn him down.

The Mexican exhaled a string of curses and spat on the floor but otherwise remained silent.

"After looking over the records I really think you should consider pleading guilty and going for a lesser sentence. With good behavior you could be out in twenty or thirty years."

Chavez's face reddened as he angrily slammed his hands on the table top. "I ain't staying in this stinking prison. I told Denton the truth…Rico did it all!"

"Settle down Chavez!" Latimer yelled through the bars.

Chavez gave him a dirty look before settling back down in his chair and turning his angry glare on the nervous lawyer.

"What about bail?" he growled. "How come I'm still in here?"

Belllis cleared his throat nervously. "Ah'm. The court feels that you are a flight risk and will not approve bail at this time."

The Mexican cursed again and slammed his fist on the small table causing the lawyer to fumble and drop his pen to the floor. With a nervous glance at Chavez, he hurriedly picked it up before Juan could have another outburst

Bellis really wanted to get out of there so with a glance at the guards he quickly got to the point.

"If you insist on your "not guilty" plea and the jury finds you guilty then you could good be sentenced to forty years for attempting to kill Agent Eppes and that sentence can be enhanced by Penal Code 12022.53."

Noting the Mexican's blank stare he tried to explain. "The Penal Code could add another 10 years for discharging a weapon or an additional 25 years to life for an intentional discharge which results in bodily harm…and you did shoot him twice." He paused to catch his breath. "You face the same charges for Professor Eppes."

"I explained all of that in my statement." Juan growled, waving a hand at the papers. "I didn't shoot the Professor."

"Right, but according to the law you are guilty by association. That means that you can be held accountable for any crime that Martinez may have committed while you were with him." Bellis continued to read through the charges. "And then you add the kidnapping of a child to the list and that carries a twenty year minimum sentence and you could be looking at a life sentence with a chance of parole in twenty years."

"I didn't hurt the professor or the kid, Rico did all of that." The Mexican snarled.

"Yes, well as I just stated you are guilty by association." Claude repeated impatiently since Chavez seemed to be ignoring the issue. "There also appears to be a number of inconsistencies between your report and…and those of the victims."

"Victims?" Juan scoffed. "You mean the kid? She never even saw me man. I already told you that Rico grabbed her, not me! "

Bellis eyes widened in surprise. "That isn't true Mr. Chavez. Agent Eppes and Professor Eppes were both there as well."

Juan laughed sarcastically. "Hell man, they might as well be dead or haven't you heard…they're both in comas ." He grinned wolfishly. "They ain't talking so they can't dispute my story."

The attorney licked his lips and looked down; nervously shuffling his papers around before he spoke again.

"Ah…Mr. Chavez, both Agent Eppes and his brother came out of their comas three days ago." He said hesitantly. "They have given the FBI a full report and all of the evidence seems to back their side of the story."

The Mexican's face turned purple with rage and he jumped to his feet upending the table in the process; tossing the files on the floor and sending the lawyer scrambling for safety.

"No!" he shouted and lunged for Bellis but the guards were faster and rushed into the cell in time to restrain the enraged man. After a short struggle the guards pushed his hands between the bars and handcuffed him to the cell wall.

Johnson turned to the lawyer with concern. "You okay Mr. Bellis?"

"Yes…yes I'm fine." The nervous man replied as he picked up his scattered papers and quickly shuffled out of the small cell. As soon as he was safely in the corridor he faced Chavez.

"I think you should find another attorney….I…I don't believe that I can represent you."

"Good!" Chavez yelled, spittle sliding down the side of his mouth; still enraged about the news of the Eppes's recovery. "I'll get my own lawyer…I have friends….they'll get me out of here!"

"It's settled then." Bellis confirmed nervously and turned to leave but his feet faltered and he glanced back at the prisoner. "You really should work on that temper." Ignoring the sudden burst of curses from Chavez, he pivoted around and followed the guards to the entrance.

Jake snickered as he watched Bellis scurry through the gate. "I believe you owe me twenty Brad."

Grumbling, Brad removed his wallet and withdrew a twenty dollar bill. Disgustedly, he slapped it into Jake's open palm. "How many does that make?"

Latimer scratched his chin. "I think that he was number three."

"At this rate Chavez is going to go through every attorney in LA County."

They turned and headed back down the corridor and as Brad held the door open for his partner he grumbled good-naturedly. "I'm not betting with you anymore. You're gonna have to find some other patsy."

Latimer chuckled as he stepped through the doorway. "That's what you said the last time."

The heavy doors of the facility slammed shut behind them as they headed deeper into the desert prison.

Bellis sighed with relief when he heard the door slam shut behind him but his heart didn't stop pounding until he was in his car and moving away from the prison facility. With a trembling hand he pulled his handkerchief from his pocket and began to wipe the sweat from his face and neck and as he pulled onto the interstate he had come to a decision; he was definitely going to open his own office and maybe limit his cases to divorces.

* * *

Dishtowel in hand, Alan pushed through the swinging door from the kitchen into the dining room. A quick glance around the room failed to find his sons so he continued on to the living room; spying his quarry he stood just out of sight and studied them thoughtfully.

Don was lying on the sofa reading a magazine and Charlie was reclining in one of their lounge chairs with a stack of papers on the table next to him. Six weeks after their rescue life was beginning to get back to normal; their wounds had almost completely healed and Don was returning to work full time in another week. Charlie's full leg cast had been replaced by a boot which he would have to wear for another two weeks but even so; he had started working half days and was already embroiled in his teaching responsibilities.

Both of them were off of all medications which prompted the get-together they were having later in the evening. Amita, Robin, Larry and Don's team were coming over to officially celebrate their recovery. He took a step forward but paused when his oldest broke the silence.

"Huh." Don huffed in surprise.

It was barely more than a grunt but it was enough to break Charlie's concentration. He raised his head and arched an eyebrow in his brother's direction while he waited for him to continue; the red marker in his hand hovering dangerously close to the paper that he was grading.

Don looked up from the article and caught Charlie's questioning gaze; feeling the sudden need to explain he tilted the magazine so that his brother could see the cover clearly.

"You're taking up bird watching?"

"No." His brother quickly denied. "This is an article on birds of prey and there is a section on our friend, the red-tail hawk…remember him? "

Charlie's eyes drifted down to his papers. "He would be hard to forget."

"'I'll say." Don quickly agreed. "Listen to this. A Red-tail hawk with its superb vision will fold its wings against its body and power dive at speeds of up to 100 miles an hour to catch a variety of lizards and snakes. " he paused and peered at Charlie over the top of the magazine. "Including rattlesnakes."

The young professor squirmed uncomfortably. "Lucky for us."

"That's an understatement Charlie." Don said darkly.

Deciding not to dwell on the incident he quickly scanned the next paragraph of the article. "This is interesting." he said but continued to read a little more before speaking again. Finally he raised his head; his eyebrows drawn together in puzzlement.

"You know, I thought that it was really odd that the bird came after the snake with us so close to it but according to this article, when a hawk focuses on a target he doesn't see anything else. I guess it's sort of like "tunnel vision",

"Really?"

"Yeah, the article goes on to say that the reason so many of them get hit by cars along the interstate is because they go into those dives, focusing only on their targets and don't even see the cars coming toward them."

"How close were you?" Alan asked grimly as he stepped forward

Two heads suddenly whipped around wearing expressions that Alan could only describe as "the deer caught in the headlight" look.

"You were listening?" Don squeaked.

"Yeah, I was listening." Alan admitted and crossed his arms determined to get an answer. "Now what about a snake?'

"I didn't say anything about a snake." Charlie muttered, scratching the back of his head and looking away.

With a raised eyebrow, Alan's gaze drifted to his eldest.

Don spared a glare for his brother before answering. "Ah…we….ah…saw a hawk snatch up a rattlesnake while we were….you know…in the desert." He scrubbed a hand through his hair and added. "It was really quite impressive."

"Really?" Alan responded, clearly unimpressed. "And how close were the two of you to said rattlesnake?"

The doorbell rang before his sons could respond and Alan would have laughed at the relieved expressions on their faces if he didn't know them so well; it must have been a pretty close call for them not to mention it to him in the first place. He stretched out the hand holding the dishtowel and shook it at them.

"This isn't over. I'll expect to hear a full explanation after our guests leave tonight." he glanced at his watch. "Speaking of guests, someone's early."

With the dishtowel still in his hand Alan flung open the door expecting to see one of their friends but instead he was greeted by a stranger.

"Alan Eppes?" the man inquired.

"Yes." Alan answered, waiting expectantly.

"We met a long time ago so I doubt if you'll remember me." The stranger offered his hand. "Walter Simmons is my name."

Alan shook his hand and stared at the man while he was trying to recall where they might have met. There was something familiar about him but he couldn't quite put his finger on it…and yet …there was something about his eyes.

"I'm sorry but you have me at a disadvantage." Alan shook his head. "I'm afraid that my memory is not as good as it used….." and then it clicked into place as he stared at the man's startling blue eyes. With a quick intake of his breath Alan whispered. "It's really you."

Walt smiled. "It's been so long that I was afraid that you wouldn't remember me."

"It's been twenty-five years but even so how could I possibly forget you after what you did for us? You've aged a bit but your eyes still look the same." Alan smiled sheepishly. "Listen to me…it's not like I haven't grown older myself. Please come in."

A thump thump was heard and both men turned to see Charlie approaching them on his crutches with Don following closely behind him.

"Officer Simmons." Don acknowledged with a puzzled frown. "What brings you here?"

Alan's eyebrows rose up in surprise "Donnie do you remember him?"

"What are you talking about Dad?" Don asked, clearly puzzled by his question. "Of course I remember him; he was our eye witness when Samantha was kidnapped."

"Really?" Alan asked. "Isn't that amazing? Imagine meeting like that after all of these years."

Charlie's forehead wrinkled. "Dad what are you talking about?"

Alan waved his hand. "You were too young to remember Charlie but I thought that Donnie might recognize him."

Don scrubbed a hand through his hair in frustration. "Well I wish one of you would tell us what is going on because I sure don't know what you're talking about."

The sound of voices and laughter suddenly erupted from the front porch as their friends arrived with arms full of pizza and beer.

"It looks like we all got here at the same time." Robin's voice floated in through the open doorway.

"Don't you just love it when a plan comes together?" Granger's voice followed Robins.

"Hey." David's voice exclaimed. "The doors already open."

A few seconds later he led the group across the threshold but pulled up short when he saw the four men standing in the foyer. Sounds of "oomphs" and "what the" followed as the people behind David ran into one another. Finally, Nikki called out from the rear of the group. "Hey the pizza is getting cold. What's going on up there?"

David frowned but stood his ground. "Everything okay in here?"

"Everything is great!" Alan beamed at him as he took the pizza from the agent's hands and carried it to the table.

Suddenly embarrassed, Walt started for the door. "I'm sorry I should have called first. I just wanted to see how the boys were doing. "

Alan rushed forward and grabbed his arm. "Please stay and join us."

"Besides." Don grinned. "You can't leave until you tell us how we know each other."

"I have to admit that pepperoni pizza does smell pretty good." Walt conceded with a smile.

"Good, let's eat." Nikki said, making her way to the front of the group. "I'm seriously starving here."

"They'll be no starving in this house." Alan harrumphed. "Everyone to the table."

The pizzas were consumed with gusto and a short while later with beers in hand, the group of friends trooped into the living room. Charlie and Amita sat at one end of the couch while Robin and Don took the other side. Alan, Nikki, Walt and Liz settled down in the other chairs scattered about the room leaving David and Colby to bring in a couple of chairs from the dining room. That only left Larry and he managed to squeeze in between Don and Amita on the couch. Everyone was relaxed and shifted around to get more comfortable while they waited for Alan to fill them in on the mystery.

"I remember how excited the boys were about getting the Koi." he glanced fondly at his sons and then smiled at his guests. "Donnie helped dig the hole for the pond and even though Charlie was only five, he made certain that the dimensions and the depth of the pond were accurate. "

Soft laughter and teasing comments filtered around the room until Alan started up again.

The light from the fire place cast a warm glow around them and a hush fell over the room as Alan began to speak. His eyes took on a distant look as the long ago memory re-surfaced and it was as if he was living in that moment once again; every detail was recalled with absolute clarity and as he began to speak his audience became totally immersed in his tale…transported to another place and time.

"Charlie was up early that morning….."

_Flashback _

_Five year old Charlie Eppes snuggled deeper into his pillow as daylight started to filter through his bedroom window. His eyelids fluttered half way open only to begin closing almost immediately._

_Suddenly big brown eyes popped open in an excited little face surrounded by curly brown hair. He swung his legs over the bed and held on to the mattress until his toes touched the floor and then he was off, padding barefoot across the floor as fast as his little legs could carry him._

_He stretched his small arms up to reach the doorknob of his parent's room and was soon standing in front of his father's side of the bed. Alan was lying on his side and snoring slightly as Charlie touched his face and exclaimed excitedly._

"_Daddy, it's time…..come on….let's go." he said urgently as he pulled on Alan's arm._

"_Not now Charlie, go back to sleep." Alan mumbled in his sleep and turned over on his other side._

_Not to be deterred, the little boy ran around to the other side of the bed where his mother was sleeping._

"_Mommy, wake up, it's time to go."_

_Margaret opened her eyes and looked into the animated face of her baby boy and couldn't suppress a smile._

"_Charlie what are you doing up so early?" She said with a yawn and stretched out a hand to caress his cheek._

"_Time to go and get the fishies." he responded excitedly._

_She pulled the covers back and lifted him up, tucking the small body beside of her as she cuddled him tightly in her arms. She quickly pulled the comforter back over them both and snuggled deeper under the covers. _

"_But Mom…..don't wana go sleep." the little boy cried out as he struggled against her embrace._

"_Sweetie, it's too early to go to the nursery to get the fish. Ooh, your legs and feet are so cold; I need to get you warm." _

"_But Mom…"_

"_Shh…shh…you'll wake up Daddy. Now go to sleep sweetie." She yawned again and snuggled against him as her eyes closed and she drifted off to sleep._

"_Go to sleep Charlie." Alan's muffled voice called from the other side of the bed._

_Charlie tried to go to sleep, he really did, but after a few seconds his eyes popped wide open once again and he began to wriggle out of Margaret's grasp. After several minutes of twisting first one way and then the other he was finally able to maneuver out of her arms and once again he slid backwards off a bed until the tips of his toes touched the floor. Very quietly he headed for the door and escaped into the hallway._

_The little boy stood sadly outside their door trying to decide what he wanted to do and then his face brightened as he thought of his big brother._

"_Donnie... Donnie will get up." he thought and once again he padded down the hallway. He reached up and turned the door knob on his brother's door and hurried into the room._

_Charlie clamored up the side of the bed and crawled over to his brother's side. He knew from experience that Donnie didn't like it when he woke him up so he stretched out beside of him and tried to wait for his brother to wake up on his own. But it didn't take Charlie long to get bored so he started counting how many breaths Donnie was taking and soon he became cold so he crawled beneath the covers and waited._

_A few hours later his parents were quietly searching the house for him when they woke up and realized that he had left their room._

"_He's in here Margaret." Alan called quietly over his shoulder._

_Margaret came up behind him and peeked into the room. "Oh, isn't that sweet. They're both sound asleep."_

_Alan huffed. "Sweet, huh, well we better get him out of there before Donnie wakes up."_

"_I guess your right." she sighed. "But they look so cute together. " She crossed the room and scooped her youngest son from under the covers and turned back toward the door with his curly head resting on her shoulder._

"_Hey, what's going on?" A sleepy voice asked from the bed. _

_Margaret turned and smiled as her ten year old raised up and leaned back on his elbows. He yawned and blinked sleepily at them as he looked around the room. _

_She shared a smile with her husband as he answered. "Time to get up Donnie. We want to get to the nursery early."_

_Donnie's eyes widened suddenly at the reminder and he quickly jumped out of bed. "Yay, we get the Koi today."_

_Margaret grinned and gently shook the little body that she was holding. "Charlie, wake up now. It's time to go and get the fish."_

_The little boy raised his head and pulled back to look up at his mother. His eyelids fluttered open momentarily and then closed again as his head fell back against her shoulder._

_She laughed and kissed the top of his head and headed down the hallway to get him cleaned up._

_After a hearty breakfast of pancakes they all climbed into the car. It didn't take long for Alan to reach the interstate and after a forty-five minute ride they exited the highway and pulled onto a two lane road. _

_They arrived at the Asahi Koi Nursery shortly after it opened and were surprised to see a large crowd of people milling around the grounds. "It looks like everyone had the same idea this morning. " Alan chuckled. _

_Most of the close parking spaces were already taken but he managed to find one that wasn't too far away from the front of the nursery. He parked the car and soon the small family was entering the main showroom._

_Inside the building the owners had set up several different displays to showcase the optimal advantages of having a Koi pond. Each one was set up to mimic a backyard pond, complete with artificial shrubbery, grass and surrounded by a miniaturized picket fence. They even had live Koi swimming around in the ponds to bring realism to the displays. _

_Rows of shelves were scattered around the large showroom containing different styles of the pre-molded ponds as well as supplies of fish food and chemicals that would be needed to maintain the fish and the ponds._

_The showroom was busy with people milling all around either speaking with a salesperson or waiting in line for their turn. Employees of the nursery darted in and out answering questions from the patrons or replenishing supplies on the shelves. _

_It was feeding time for the fish so while Margaret and Alan spoke with a salesperson, the boys flocked to one of the ponds to watch the hungry fish race to the surface for the food. _

"_Donnie." Alan warned. "Watch your brother, don't let him climb over the fence. " _

"_Sure Dad." the ten year old glumly promised as he took his brother by the hand._

_Seth Hendrickson, a new employee of the Ashai Nursery, picked up the box of fish food and brushed passed the young boys as he made his way back to one of the shelves and set the box down. He glanced sideways at the boys near the pond and scratched absently at the needle marks on his arms as he studied them. _

_The two boys stood near one of the ponds gazing at the fish. Charlie's eyes followed their movements and moved closer to get a clearer view._

"_Donnie." he said excitedly. "Look at that yellow one. It keeps swimming the same way."_

"_Of course it keeps swimming the same way Charlie." the older boy rolled his eyes. "That's what they do."_

"_No." the smaller boy tried to explain, moving closer so he could trace its movements better. "He goes a different way than the othews."_

"_You heard what Dad said Charlie." Don said impatiently as he pulled his brother back from the fence rail. _

_But Charlie wasn't listening and had started counting the fish. "Mommy…Daddy…." he called out with delight. "Thewe are nine fish in the watew. I counted them."_

_Margaret smiled proudly at her youngest. "That's good Charlie."_

"_Knock it off Chuckie." Don growled._

_Charlie scowled at his brother. "Don't call me Chuckie!" _

"_Hey kid." _

_Charlie turned his head and followed the sound of the voice to a man standing in the shadows of one of the shelves. _

"_You like the fish?" Seth whispered. "There's a bigger pond over here." he stretched out his hand. "Come on, I'll show you."_

_Suddenly afraid, Charlie backed up against his brother but Don hadn't seen the man and was still looking at the fish in the pond._

"_Watch it Charlie." Don said irritably, pushing him away._

"_Charlie." The stranger whispered with more self assurance now that he had the kid's name. "Come on let me show you the other fish. There are a lot more for you to count."_

_Seth had moved a little closer and was now within a few feet of the child but was still hidden from view by the shelves. He peered around the corner, keeping an eye on the kid's parents and the other people in the vicinity. The closest adults were the boy's parents and they were on the other side of the display. He glanced behind him and studied the path to the front door; he could grab the kid and be outside before anyone even noticed. _

"_Hey Dad. " Donnie asked excitedly, pointing at one of the fish. "Can we get this big one?"_

_The man narrowed his eyes as the older boy called out to his Dad. If the boys father came over it would ruin his plans._

"_No Donnie." Alan answered turning from the sales person. "The big ones are too expensive. We're just buying the little ones today." He checked to make sure his sons were safe before resuming his conversation._

_Relieved, the man in the shadows became more insistent and once again the small boy moved closer to his brother._

"_Stop it Charlie." Don grumbled and started to push him away again when he noticed that he was trembling. "What's the matter with you anyway?" When his brother didn't answer he raised his head to see what Charlie was looking at._

_There was something about the stranger that Don disliked immediately and he glanced over at his parents hoping to get their attention but they were still deep in a conversation with the salesperson. He swallowed nervously and looked back just as the man lunged forward and grabbed his brother._

_Seth jerked the boy forward and quickly picked him up; slinging an arm around his waist and pinning the boy's arms to his sides. He pulled the boy back until his back rested tightly against his chest and clapped a hand over the child's mouth before turning to run but to his surprise the other boy screamed his brother's name and made a grab for him._

_Seth let go of Charlie's mouth and backhanded Donnie, sending him staggering against one of the shelves. However, to his dismay, it soon became apparent that the small boy had an excellent pair of lungs because as soon as he moved his hand a series of high-pitch wails suddenly shattered the peaceful showroom. _

_He became aware of the parents screams as they rounded the pond and at the same time the older boy grabbed his brother legs and tried to pull him free._

"_Let h'm go!" The ten year old boy screamed, kicking at the man while he struggled to get his brother loose._

_Seeing no way out, Seth shoved Charlie into Don's arms then grabbed him by the back of his tee shirt and pulled him against his chest. He gripped the shirt tightly in his fist keeping the boy close to him as he pulled a six-inch switch blade from his other pocket and flicked it open. _

"_Stand back or I'll kill'em both!" he shouted, holding the blade within inches of Charlie's neck. _

_Don's eyes widened fearfully as he looked down at the knife and his arms tightened protectively around his brother's chest. Charlie had stopped screaming as soon as Don's arms were wrapped around him but he was becoming uncomfortable dangling from his arms and was starting to squirm around. _

"_Stay still Charlie! " Donnie hissed. "Don't move!"_

_Alan and Margaret slid to a sudden halt a few feet away at the sight of the knife._

"_Noooooo….don't hurt my babies!" Margaret screamed. "Please don't hurt them!" She tried to push past her husband but he held her protectively behind him._

_Desperately Alan stretched out his hand toward the boys. "Please…mister…don't hurt our sons." he tried to lick his lips but his mouth had suddenly gone dry. "Please let our kids go and we won't follow you….I promise." _

_His jaw tightened at the sight of Donnie's bruised cheek and watched as blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. Alan seethed with anger; he was not a violent man but if he could just get close enough to grab the man's hand he knew without a doubt that he would make him pay for what he had done to his sons. Donnie's face was pale and his eyes were wide with fear and all Alan could do was try to control his erratically beating heart._

"_It'll be okay Donnie….just don't move." He tried to sound positive; tried to give his son a little hope but he was just as terrified as they were. _

"_Mommy….Daddy." Charlie cried out with tears falling from his lashes._

_Margaret sobbed; stretching her own arms toward her sons. "Stay still baby…don't move."_

_Other patrons and employees of the nursery had gathered behind the parents and Seth's eyes began to flicker crazily from person to person._

"_Stay back or I'll kill them both!" He shouted, pulling Donnie backwards towards the door._

_The owner of the nursery pushed his way through the crowd and stopped just behind Alan. _"_Seth what are you doing?" he demanded. "Put down that knife and let those boys go!"_

_But Hendrickson was beyond reason and he continued to back his way toward the door; dragging the boys along with him. He was starting to panic; he knew he couldn't risk getting caught again. Having already violated his parole by not telling his employer about his record and by getting a job where children could be present he would be sent straight back to prison….and he really didn't want to go back there._

"_Mister....let them go... Please!" Alan begged, following as closely as he dared with Margaret clinging to his side._

_Seth continued to move back and exhaled a nervous breath when he heard the automatic door open behind him. He continued to back up; his hand still gripping tightly to the boy's shirt. Just a few more feet and he would be outside in the open and then he would get rid of the older kid and use the smaller one for a hostage. But as the heel of his shoe made contact with the sidewalk he felt a presence behind him and suddenly a cold metallic object was pressed against the back of his head. Hendrickson stiffened up and moved the knife closer to the smaller boy's throat. _

"_I…I swear man." he said harshly. "I'll kill them."_

"_Put down the knife." A deep and commanding voice ordered. "Let the boys go."_

_Seth's face paled and his eyes widened with fear and although visibly shaken, he still wasn't ready to give up. _

_Breathlessly he demanded. "Get out of my way or I'll cut the kid's throat. I mean it man."_

_The man behind him released the safety on his gun and the unmistakable sound echoed loudly through the open doorway. Another police officer suddenly appeared to his left, gun drawn and ready to fire if it became necessary. _

"_Let the boys go! " The officer shouted._

_Stubbornly, Seth pulled the boys even closer to him and with more bravado than he felt he gave them an ultimatum. _

"_When I 'm away from here I'll let the kids go! " he shouted angrily. "Move out of my way or I'll kill them both right now!" The blade shook in his hand as he pressed it against the little boy's throat._

"_Nooo….nooo" Margaret wailed sinking to her knees as a wave of grief washed over her. Tears streaming down her cheeks she lifted her arms toward her sons. "Don't hurt them….please…please."_

"_Get that knife away from my sons!" Alan roared helplessly as he watched the knife shake in the man's trembling hand._

_But their pleas fell on deaf ears as Seth moved the sharp blade back and forth between Donnie and Charlie. The muzzle jammed harder against his skull and he swallowed hard in an attempt to control his fear but the officer's words resonated loudly in his ears._

"_We both know that if I let you leave with those kids they will both be dead by nightfall." _

"_No…that's not true." Seth hastily denied. "I will let them go if you let me leave."_

"_You're lying!" The officer hissed in his ear. "I will pull this trigger if you so much as prick one of those boys with that knife…..and that's no lie!" he paused to let him consider his words. "So the real question is do you want to live or are you ready to die?"_

_Seth's hands were sweating so much that the knife almost slipped from his fingers but he caught it before it came into contact with the older boy's neck. The officer's words echoed in his mind and he had no doubt that the man would pull the trigger. He shuddered as a shiver of fear ran down his spine and he took a steadying breath as he came to a decision. Slowly the hand holding the knife moved away from the boys and he dropped the knife to the floor. Seth released his hold on Don's tee shirt and let his arm fall to his side. Immediately, he was seized from behind and his arms were forced behind his back; he swallowed hard as the cuffs were placed on his wrists._

_Alan and Margaret hurried forward and pulled their son's away from the now subdued man. Margaret grabbed Charlie with one arm and wrapped her other arm around Don, pulling them down with her as she sank to the floor once again. Alternating kisses and hugs between the two of them, the distraught mother held them close; rocking them back and forth in her arms. _

_Alan knelt down next to them and with tears sliding down his cheeks he wrapped his arms around his family and pulled them close; his forehead touching Margaret's. They sat that way for a while and then Alan pulled back with Donnie held tightly in his arms. The ten year old was crying and had his arms wrapped around his fathers neck. Alan rubbed small circles on his back and whispered that he was safe now, that everything was going to be all right. _

_Charlie was still sobbing, his little arms firmly planted around his mother's neck and his face pressed against her shoulder. Margaret was rocking him back and forth and gently stroking his hair as she attempted to silence her own cries._

_One of the police officers joined them and quietly stood nearby; giving them a few more minutes before he spoke. _

"_Mr. Eppes." he said somberly. "Mrs. Eppes."_

_Alan felt a hand on his shoulder and he raised his head, tears glistening in his eyes. _

"_Yes. "He replied in a voice thick with emotion. _

"_I'm Officer Simmons, Mr. Eppes." He knelt down beside of Alan. "Are the boys okay?"_

"_I…ah…think so." Alan said clearing his throat. "Although they're both pretty scared."_

_Margaret looked up, twin trails of black mascara running down her cheeks. _

"_How is the little guy doing?" The officer asked, stretching out his hand to pat Charlie gently on the back._

"_S…scared." She mumbled and then she recognized the man. He had been the officer who had forced the stranger to drop the knife. "Thank you…..thank you so much." she added fervently._

_Walt ducked his head. "I'm glad I could help ma'mm."_

"_Yes." Alan joined in. "Thank you."_

"_That was certainly a scary situation." The officer replied. "The owner's security camera caught everything on tape so I won't have to get a statement from you right now. You and your family can come down to the station tomorrow and give your statements."_

_Donnie pulled back from Alan; wiping away tears with the back of his hand and looked up into the startling blue eyes of the officer._

"_That was a very brave thing you did son." Simmons said, patting him on the arm. "It took a lot of courage to go after that man the way you did. " _

"_He was…he was." Donnie gulped and looked down at his jeans. "going to hurt Charlie."_

"_Yes he was, but your actions prevented that from happening." _

"_That…that…. man….he'll…. go to jail…right?" Donnie asked tentatively and then his voice hardened and his eyes flashed angrily. "I want him to stay in jail….all people like him should stay in jail. If…if I was a grown up, I'd make sure that all people like him stayed in jail so they couldn't hurt other people."_

"_You're absolutely right son." The officer said solemnly and met the little boy's eyes. "Maybe when you grow up you'll consider going into law enforcement. We could use someone like you. But right now I think we need to have that bruise on your cheek checked out." He patted Don on the shoulder and then turned to Alan. _

"_An ambulance has just arrived and you should let the attendants take a look at the kids." Simmons said as he rose to his feet._

_Alan stood up and Donnie followed, clinging to his side. Keeping one arm around his son he offered his other hand to the officer._

"_I can never repay you for saving my boys." Alan's voice broke and he hugged Donnie tighter. "We could have lost them both today."_

"_I could say that I was just doing my job Mr. Eppes but I'll be honest with you, it's days like today that make my job worthwhile." he glanced at the two boys and smiled. "Today was a good day." He turned and pointed at the ambulance in the parking lot. "Come on; let's get the boys checked out."_

_Alan nodded in agreement and gave Margaret a helping hand as she rose unsteadily to her feet; still holding Charlie tightly in her arms. _

_Simmons left them at the ambulance and rejoined the other officers clustered around Seth Hendrickson._

"The last thing I remember is watching you pull out of the parking lot." Alan said, turning to face Walt; breaking the spell of the story.

"Funny you should say that." Walt said, lost in the memory too. "I remember the four of you standing in front of the nursery. You and your wife were standing behind Don, each of you with a hand resting on his shoulders and Don had an arm looped protectively over Charlie's shoulder." He shook his head and smiled. "It was that memory that brought it all back to me."

Colby leaned forward. "What do you mean?"

"On the day of the Wilkins kidnapping I was sitting in the ambulance when Don and Charlie arrived at the scene." his eyes flickered between the brothers. "You both got out of the car and spread a map out on the hood of the vehicle and then Charlie started to walk away but Don looped an arm around his neck and called over a police officer to go with him." His face broke into a smile. "For a moment the two of you were standing in exactly the same position that you were standing in the last time that I saw you….twenty-five years ago."

David whistled through his teeth. "Wow."

"How is that even possible?" Nikki sputtered. "I mean….there have to be over three million people in LA."

"3,844,829 to be exact." Charlie quoted absently, still trying to absorb this new revelation.

"Exactly!" she exclaimed. "So how could something like this happen?"

"Charlie what are the odds?" Liz asked and all eyes turned to the mathematician.

The young professor shrugged helplessly. "There's not enough data on something like this to be able to arrive at any plausible solution."

"Well now." Larry said tapping his forefinger against his lip, "Cosmologically speaking, everything that happens has happened before."

The physicist's comments caused more than one eyebrow to rise slightly as blank stares were exchanged among the friendly group.

Charlie blinked and then turned to his brother. "I have no memory of being snatched up by anyone. Do you remember the incident?"

"No. " Don said his forehead wrinkling as he thought it over. He raised his head and met Walt's eyes. "But I remember your eyes and the feeling of looking up at you."

"Charlie was way too young to remember the incident" Alan said turning to his oldest. "But I'm surprised that you don't."

"Children are very resilient." Simmons spoke up. "Over time they are able to put the bad things behind them and only remember the good things, especially if it only happens once."

"Is that why Sammy only remembers our desert trek as a happy adventure?" Charlie asked.

"Probably but I'm no psychologist." Alan said speaking up. "Angela said the child therapist told her that you guys must have made Sammy feel safe because in every picture that she draws of the three of you, you are always smiling so she only has memories of the good times that you shared."

"We tried to keep the fact that we were being chased from her." Charlie admitted, ducking his head and looking away as the horrors of those desperate days returned with a sudden jolt. Amita felt him tense next to her and squeezed his hand to let him know that he wasn't alone.

"Yeah." Don confirmed, getting caught up in the moment himself. "We didn't want her to be scared so we tried to make her feel safe." His voice choked up; his feelings resurfacing and he smiled gratefully at Robin when she put an arm around his waist and snuggled closer.

"You did an amazing job of it." David said in a soft voice and then raised his beer bottle in the air. "A toast to Don and Charlie, true heroes in every sense of the word."

Enthusiastic cheers erupted around the room as the brother's locked eyes and then tapped their beer bottles together.

A strange but oddly familiar ring tone suddenly echoed around the room and Alan hastily fumbled for the cell phone in his pocket. After a few moments of conversation he closed the phone and set it on the table next to him.

Charlie's brows knitted together in disbelief. "Dad was that tune…?"

Don finished for him. "Put one step in front of the other?"

"Yeah. It's appropriate don't you think?." Alan asked, his face breaking into a grin. "That's Sammy's ring tone." He glanced around the room as he proudly explained. "She calls me "Pop Pop Alan. Angela's parents are back east and her husband's parents have passed on so she doesn't have any grandparents in the area." He smiled smugly, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms across his chest. "If you can be her uncles then I can certainly be her grandfather. Besides," he added, leaning forward with a twinkle in his eye as he looked pointedly at his sons. "I'll have lots of practice at being a grandparent until you two come up with the rest of my grandchildren."

Don and Charlie simultaneously rolled their eyes and with a hopeless shake of their heads looked away as laughter echoed around the room; it was no secret to the friends gathered there that Alan desired grandchildren.

"Oh, by the way." Alan added, wearing a puzzled expression as he looked over his glasses at his sons. "Angela and Sammy are coming over tomorrow afternoon and I told them that you both would be here. For some reason Sammy seems to think that you guys don't know how to make a… pie?"

Charlie was just taking a swallow of his beer and began to sputter, suddenly choking on his drink.

"Now that, " Don replied grinning broadly, his eyes crinkling at the corners, "is another story."

* * *

Three weeks later Walt stepped back and admired his yacht; it's new name glistening brightly in the morning sunlight. The boat was complete now and he was ready to set sail and really begin to enjoy his retirement. His final destination was Port Arthur, Texas where his ex-wife and his children resided. Although they had been divorced for many years neither one of them had ever remarried. It had been an amicable divorce and they remained friends over the years and he had kept in touch with his children. Now they were both grown with children of their own and he was looking forward to spending quality time with his grandchildren.

The only thing that had been holding him back was the naming of his boat and the courage to go through with his dream. The last case before his retirement had been a failure; he had been unable to prevent the death of a young woman and although they had caught the person responsible it did little to ease the guilt that he had felt because they had been too late to save her life. He had left the force feeling as if all of the sacrifices that he had made to fulfill his life's work had been for nothing and it had taken the events of the past few months to resolve both issues for him.

Walt took a deep breath and smiled; he had discovered a new purpose in life and was ready to embrace it.

He caught movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to get a clearer view. Three men were walking down the dock toward him and he raised his hand in greeting.

"Glad to see that you could make it." He called out cheerfully.

"It's not everyday that I get to watch my sons christen a boat. " Alan Eppes laughingly replied.

"I'm curious how you plan to have two people christen your boat with only one bottle of champagne." Charlie snickered. "The math just doesn't add up." The boot had been removed from his leg and the only reminder of his injury was a slight limp as he walked.

Don playfully shoved his brother aside and rolled his eyes. "Just ignore him Walt." he glanced at his father. "I knew we should have left him at home."

"Hey." Charlie retorted, pretending to be offended. "I think we should have left you at home."

"All right boys, that'll be enough." Alan interceded good-naturedly. "So, what did you finally name her?"

Walt smiled and said. "Follow me."

He quickly walked to the edge of the pier and with a flourish of his hand and a quick bow he said. "Gentlemen I present to you the _"Inner Peace." _

The tranquil sound of the water gently lapping against the sides of the yacht seemed to emphasize the meaning of the boat's name.

"Very nice." Alan commented. "The last time that we talked you said that you were having trouble deciding on the name of your boat. What made you decide on "Inner Peace"? "

"When I joined the force years ago and I took the oath "to protect and serve" and I meant it with all my heart." Walt said, his eyes taking on a distant look as he spoke. "And in all of my years as a police officer I tried to keep that oath in my heart." He paused and made eye contact with Don. "Just like you Don, but it gets harder after you've seen the horrors that people can inflict upon one another…especially to the children."

Don nodded and looked away. He knew all too well the truth behind Walt's statement and lately, it had become a heavy burden for him to bear. The agent had been questioning his own resolve, feeling lost and doubting his own reasons for joining the FBI. He had been feeling as if his efforts were no longer making a difference and he had grown tired of getting to a crime scene too late.

The retired officer smiled knowingly at the agent. "After my last case, all of the ribbons and commendations that I had earned over the years didn't seem to be important anymore. The only thing that seemed to matter to me were the cases that I had lost, the ones where I was too late to save the victim, or the criminal got away." He shrugged his shoulders and glanced at the boat. "It was like I was in limbo or something, unable to move forward and unable to go back and change what had already happened."

"So what changed?" Alan asked. "A few weeks ago you seemed despondent but now you appear happy and excited."

"What changed?" Walt grinned broadly at him. "My faith has been restored. I realized that I have made a difference and that I have fulfilled my oath." He met Don's eye again. "We can't save everyone Don, no matter what we do or how hard we try. I know that now but we can rejoice in the one's that we do save."

Alan tilted his head to the side. "What restored your faith?"

Walt stepped closer and put one hand on Charlie's shoulder and the other on Don's. "In my case, it was meeting your sons again. "

"How so?" Don asked.

"Simple. Twenty-five years ago I answered a call for help from a fish nursery and arrived just as a man was dragging two small boys out of the door. My intervention saved their lives and they grew up to save more lives." He smiled warmly at Don and Charlie as he stepped back. "One grew up to become an FBI agent and the other a genius mathematician that helps his brother solve crimes. Quite an extraordinary team, wouldn't you say?"

Alan proudly clapped both sons on the back. "They do make one hell of a team."

"Yes they do." Walt agreed and bent over to pick up two bottles of champagne. He offered one to Charlie and one to Don. "I would be honored if the two of you would christen my boat."

Charlie and Don both smiled and took the bottles from him. They walked over to the yacht and got into position to hit the bottles against the side of the boat.

Charlie looked at Don. "Shall we do it together?"

Don grinned. "Why not? Teamwork seems to be our forte."

The sound of breaking glass and laughter erupted on the dock and then Walt took them on board and showed them around. He produced another bottle of champagne and filled four champagne glasses. "This is the good stuff." He said with a wink and offered each of them a glass.

They raised their glasses and tapped them together.

"To finding your dream." Alan said.

"May you have smooth sailing." Charlie offered

"To finding your inner peace." Don added softly.

After the toast they talked for a while and Walt informed him of his plans and just before noon Alan, Don and Charlie prepared to leave.

"Why don't you join us for lunch?" Alan asked before they disembarked.

"I appreciate the offer but I'm ready to set sail."

"Then we won't hold you up any longer." Don said extending his hand.

"If you come back to LA be sure to stop in and see us." Charlie said as he warmly shook his hand and disembarked.

Alan met his eyes and said softly. "I meant what I said all of those years ago Walt. You'll always have a special place with us and I will never be able to thank you enough."

"I'm just glad that I was there Alan." he answered, his voice thick with emotion.

"Yes…well, smooth sailing." Alan said, his own voice choking up. His shook his hand warmly and without another word he followed his sons to the dock below.

Don and Charlie were discussing where to go for lunch when Alan joined them and quickly tossed out a suggestion of his own.

"I could go for a good burger." he said.

"I'm good with that." Don agreed.

"Sounds good to me." Charlie said. "Any suggestion on where to go?"

Walt overheard them and leaned over the side of his yacht. "Have you guys ever tried O"Reilly's Bar and Grill…..it's at the corner of 4th & Alameda?"

"I've heard a few guys talk about it at work." Don said with a shrug of his shoulders. "They seemed to like it."

"Best burgers in the city." Walt assured them.

"I vote we try O'Reilly's." Alan said. Don and Charlie agreed and turned to make their way back to the car.

"Hey Don. Could you release the mooring rope for me?" Walt called as he prepared to sail.

"Sure thing." Don said and tossed the rope up to him. "Smooth sailing my friend."

Walt gave them a final wave and started the engine. Slowly he backed out of the slip into the bay, guiding the boat toward the open waters. The black SUV caught his eye as it pulled out of the parking lot and as a thought suddenly occurred to him he couldn't stifle a grin. He probably should have warned Don and Charlie that Patrick O'Reilly had added their pictures to his "Wall of Heroes" and that Pat would no doubt pay special attention to them if they went to his restaurant. He hoped that they were going there because he couldn't think of two people that deserved to be honored more than them. In his opinion the extraordinary efforts that the brother's had taken to save the little girl's life was something that should never be forgotten.

The gentle breeze lifted his hair and he raised his face toward the sun. A new life was beckoning to him ….and he owed it all to two brothers from Pasadena.

Finis

Thank you for reading my story. See you next time.

1st E.


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